Calling it “another miracle on the Hudson,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul thanked God on Monday after a small plane crash landed on the icy Hudson River near the Newburgh Beacon Bridge, and both the pilot and the only passenger survived with just “minor injuries.”
“Another miracle on the Hudson. Thank God both the pilot and passenger of a single-engine plane that performed an ice landing near Newburgh have been located with only minor injuries,” Hochul wrote in a post on X Monday night. “Grateful to our first responders for their quick actions.”
The Middle Hope Fire Department said in a statement on Facebook that they responded along with other agencies to a report of the plane crash at about 8:04 p.m.
“On arrival, units were initially unable to locate the aircraft in the water at the reported location. After a few minutes of searching the area by several first responders, the plane was ultimately located within the City of Newburgh,” the statement said. “The occupants were able to safely extricate themselves and swim to shore.”
Both pilot and passenger were then evaluated by the Town of Newburgh Emergency Medical Services on the scene. A report from the New York State Police identified the aircraft as a Cessna. The travelers were found on shore near 401 Water Street and transported to St. Luke’s Hospital after evaluation.
The New York State Police also noted that Stewart International Airport operations were in communication with a Cessna airplane before the crash, and they are investigating the incident with the National Transportation Safety Board.
In a recording of the mayday call of the distressed Cessna obtained by News 12, the pilot can be heard explaining that he would have to land on the Hudson because he lost his engine.
“We’ve lost our engine,” the pilot is heard saying. “We’re going to go into the Hudson River. I don’t think we’re going to make the airport.”
The Middle Hope Fire Department had high praise for the pilot’s handling of the emergency.
“An absolute hats off job by the pilot of the aircraft last night. Despite losing the engine, he remained calm throughout the event,” the department said in a statement Tuesday. “He was able to give precise details as possible throughout the event. Following the unorthodox descent, exited the plane and swam in freezing water with his passenger to shore.”
Carrie Massari-Carey, assistant chief at the Town of Newburgh Emergency Medical Services, told The New York Post on Tuesday that first responders found the pilot and passenger inside a waterfront warehouse.
“The pilot was making jokes to us about the clothes he was wearing because they had taken clothes from the warehouse that weren’t theirs — obviously to get out of the wet clothes,” Massari-Carey said. “They were definitely in good spirits.”
Massari-Carey further told The New York Post that the crash landing was one of the most interesting calls she’s ever responded to in her career.
“I think seeing the plane in the water, seeing the patients come out and being as stable as they were for me was pretty shocking,” she said. “I think everybody was pretty shocked, honestly. Just thankful that they were alive.”
Hochul’s “miracle on the Hudson” comment references Chesley B. Sullenberger III, the pilot who safely landed a passenger plane in the Hudson River in 2009. All 150 passengers and five crew members who were on the flight after the engines failed due to a bird strike survived. Then Gov. David Paterson dubbed the incident the “miracle on the Hudson.”
Sullenberger, who is a former fighter pilot with decades of flying experience, received several honors for his actions. Among those honors was an invitation to Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration and resolutions of praise from the U.S. Congress.
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