Plane crashes into homes near South Bend airport

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WSBT) - A small plane crashed into three homes in South Bend Sunday afternoon, injuring a number of people and killing two others.

The crash happened southeast of the South Bend Regional Airport.

WSBT-TV reports there were four people on the Beechcraft Premier I twin-jet  – two were killed.

St. Joseph County Coroner Randy Magdalinski identified the victims of Sunday's crash in South Bend as 60-year-old Steven Davis and 58-year-old Wesley Caves, both of Tulsa, Okla. Davis is a former quarterback for the Oklahoma University's football team.

South Bend Memorial Hospital spokeswoman Maggie Scroope said three people injured in the crash were being treated there. Jim Rogers is listed in serious condition and two were in fair condition including Christopher Evans. Both were on board the private jet. She did not have their hometowns or their ages.

The other person listed in fair condition at the hospital who was injured on the ground after the plane crashed is Diana McKeown.

WSBT reporters at the scene Sunday say the jet hit one home, damaged a second, and landed on a third. The jet was reported out of Tulsa, OK.

"I was looking out my picture window," said Mary Jane Klaybor, who lives across the street from the crash site. "This (plane) was coming straight at my house. I went, 'Huh?' and then there was a big crash, and all the insulation went flying."

South Bend Assistant Fire Chief John Corthier said officials believe everyone connected with the damaged homes had been accounted for and that there were no known missing people. However, crews had not fully searched two of the damaged houses because jet fuel and structural damage had created a "very dangerous" scene, officials said.

"The leaking has stopped, but there is fuel in the basement. That is one of our major concerns, the fuel," Corthier said. "I believe they said they're going to have to tear down a portion of the house to make it stable. That probably won't happen until (Monday)

Part of the neighborhood southwest of the airport was evacuated after the crash, and electricity also was cut off as a precaution.

The pilot reported an electrical problem on approach, according to the FAA.

Mike Daigle, executive director of the St. Joseph County Airport Authority, said the jet attempted a landing about 4:15 p.m., went back up and maneuvered south to try another landing, but eight minutes later the airport learned the plane was no longer airborne.

The plane stalled on its final approach and crashed.

An engine company was en route to the airport when its members witnessed the crash, Corthier said.

"Our arrival on the scene was immediate. Our working to get the occupants out started immediately. We were able to get some of the occupants out of the plane right away," Corthier said.

The plane was registered to 7700 Enterprises of Montana LLC in Helena, Mont. The company is owned by Wes Caves and does business as DigiCut Systems in Tulsa, Okla. It makes window film and paint overlay for automobiles.

A woman identifying herself as Caves' wife answered the phone at their home Sunday and said, "I think he's dead," before hanging up.

National Transportation Safety Board investigator Todd Fox arrived at the scene late Sunday. He said his agency will not only seek the cause of the crash "but also to identify and remedy any issues that could have prevented this accident."

AP contributed to this report.