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Plane hits power lines, crashes onto N.C. interstate

A pilot, passenger and truck driver escaped serious injury in a fiery crash on I-26 near Asheville

Associated Press

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A small plane crashed on a western North Carolina highway and caught fire Thursday night, but the two people on board escaped life-threatening injuries, authorities said.

A single-engine Diamond DA-40 crashed on Interstate 26 near Asheville Regional Airport around 8:15 p.m. with two people on board, the Federal Aviation Administration reported.

The private plane was descending over I-26 to land at the airport when it hit power lines and a tractor-trailer, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol said in a statement. The two people aboard the plane were able to get out before it caught fire, with only minor injuries. The driver of the truck was not hurt, the highway patrol said.

The interstate reopened Friday morning, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.

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