NEW SALEM — The pilot of a small plane was rescued from the Quabbin Reservoir by a Massachusetts State Police trooper after crashing into the water Friday night, New Salem Fire Chief Matt O’Donnell confirmed.
In a statement, O’Donnell said the New Salem Fire Department, New Salem Police Department, Orange Fire Department and the Massachusetts State Police responded to the Quabbin Reservoir at 7:40 p.m. after a witness reported a plane had crashed into the water, and there was a person in the water calling for help.
Firefighters arrived and confirmed the report of an adult man in the water near Fishing Area 2 off of Route 122 on Regulating Dam Road. New Salem firefighters maintained voice and visual contact with the man, who was identified as the plane’s pilot.
The first responding state trooper was equipped with a personal flotation device and a tether line. The trooper was able to rescue the pilot, who was taken back to shore and transported by an Orange Fire Department ambulance to the Orange Municipal Airport. From there, he was airlifted to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester.
Melissa Sippel, spokesperson for the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office, said in a statement on Saturday that the plane was a single-engine Cessna aircraft and that the pilot was the sole occupant. A cause of the crash has not been released.
The plane remained fully submerged after the crash on Friday night and O’Donnell said it would stay in the water until personnel and equipment could remove it. O’Donnell said personnel were expected to be on scene Saturday as well.
Northfield Fire Chief Floyd “Skip” Dunnell III confirmed Friday night that the Northfield Dive/Rescue Team was initially requested to respond but was canceled en route.
More than 10 emergency vehicles could be seen lining Route 122 on Friday night, while investigators with flashlights moved about the nearby woods and took photos. A Wendell/Leverett Police cruiser was also on scene.
According to Sippel, the incident remains under active investigation by the New Salem Police and Fire departments, the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the DA’s office, the Massachusetts State Police Underwater Recovery Team, the Massachusetts Crime Scene Services Section and the National Transportation Safety Board.
