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| Update: Canadian Family Safe After Small Plane Makes Emergency Landing in Lewis County 04/09/18 02:30pm By: Nick Altmire (nick@linkinglewiscounty.com) |
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plane made an emergency landing late Sunday afternoon, near the intersection of Willow Grove and Number Three Roads in the Town of Lowville. Lewis County Undersheriff Jason McIntosh said that Patrice Makinen, 47, of Quebec, was flying a 2003 Cirrus SR-22 aircraft, with a female passenger identified as Julie Charlebois, also of Quebec, and their five-month-old child, on their way to Massena for refueling. The couple had previously departed from Georgia, with the last refueling stop in Pennsylvania, and were en route back to Quebec. Mr. Makinen had to divert his route to avoid restricted airspace around the Rome area, taking off the autopilot setting. At an altitude of around 9,000 feet, he encountered heavy clouds associated with a lake effect snow band over Lewis County. Mr. Makinen apparently became disoriented coming in and out of the clouds and noticed a change in pitch in the engine sound. At that point he decided to make an emergency landing and deployed the aircraft's Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS). With no control over the location of the landing, the plane luckily ended up making an upright landing into a field off the Willow Grove Road. The Sheriff's office received calls to the dispatch center alerting them to a plane with a parachute deployed making a landing in the field. Officials from Fort Drum's Wheeler Sack Airfield also contacted the Sheriff's Office to notify them that they had received a Mayday call, providing officers with the coordinates. "It's a miracle they ended up landing where they did," Undersheriff McIntosh said. All three occupants were transported to Lewis County General Hospital for a precautionary evaluation, with no injuries reported. First responders were concerned that the plane would flip over given the windy conditions and the parachute still being attached to the plane. A tracked UTV was requested to the scene so responders could cut the parachute. Unfortunately, prior to the UTV's arrival, a gust of wind caught the parachute, flipping the plane end-over-end onto its top. No one was in the plane at that time, and no injuries were reported. The plane is now thought to be totaled after the damage caused from flipping over. Fuel is slowly leaking from the plane, with approximately 50 gallons still in each wing. The NYS DEC was notified and are on scene. Mr. Makinen is the owner of the plane, which was insured. Undersheriff McIntosh said investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration will be on scene on Tuesday. After they clear the scene, the aircraft will be transported to a hangar in Watertown for the insurance company to evaluate. The family spent last evening in Lowville, and obtained a rental car this morning to return home to Quebec. Undersheriff McIntosh said four officers from the Sheriff's Office responded to the scene, along with Copenhagen Fire, Lewis County Search & Rescue and Director of Lewis County Emergency Management Robert MacKenzie. |
This photo shows the plane, just after landing, still in an upright position.
The various photos below show the plane after it flipped over and the
parachute was removed:
parachute was removed:
