Two people were injured Saturday night when a remote-controlled plane smashed into their home on Buena Vista Drive, where they had gathered with friends and family to watch the Fire In The Sky Open House show at the nearby Watsonville Municipal Airport.
In a Facebook post from the City of Watsonville, city officials said that the plane went off course and struck two people outside a home on the 300 block of Buena Vista Drive at about 7:02pm.
Beth Stocking, who lives at the house, said that the plane ripped the skin off the male victim’s hand. He was scheduled to have surgery on Sunday.
The female victim was injured when the plane’s wing slammed into her leg, waist and thighs, knocking her to the ground.
“One moment we’re having a great time at the party, then there’s this crash and I turned around and I saw people down and blood everywhere,” Stocking said.
The remote-controlled plane ripped through a large sun umbrella, hit two people and then plunged through a wood deck at the front of the home. The crash also shattered a window, spraying fuel across the front of the single-story house and into the living room. A neighbor and Stocking described the aircraft as a jet with a wingspan of about six feet. The impact left a 3-foot hole in the deck and shattered a wood patio bench.
Airplane parts were scattered across the property on Sunday morning, and blood could be seen dotting the deck.
“This could have been so much worse,” Stocking said. “We had no warning; there were kids playing in the jump house, people enjoying themselves in the yard and on the deck. It happened so fast; it just took a sudden nose dive right into our party.
The Pajaronian has reached out to Airport Manager Rayvon Williams for comment. Stocking said Williams responded to the incident Saturday night.
“He was really helpful,” Stocking said.
Watsonville Police and Fire departments, airport personnel, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol responded to the incident.
“We have this party every year for the airshow,” Stocking said. “I just hope the injured people recover quickly and we get to the bottom of what went wrong and who was at the controls. We’re just really frightened and not sure what to do next.”
