CRASH CHAOS
Plane crashes near lake at UK beauty spot as emergency services flood scene and locals told to avoid the area
A LIGHT aircraft has come crashing to the ground near a lake – sparking a massive emergency response.
Emergency crews raced to the scene of the crash earlier today after it was reported the aircraft, understood to be carrying two people, fell from the sky.
A scene has been established around a beauty spot near Hollingworth Lake in Littleborough, Greater Manchester.
Police are asking the public to keep clear of the area as emergency crews work at the scene.
It remains unclear if anyone was seriously injured in the crash with cops saying two passengers were believed to be on board the aircraft.
Greater Manchester Police said they were working alongside paramedics and fire crews and “assessing any casualties.”
The type of aircraft involved also remains unclear but initial reports suggest it was a small plane.
A witness told BBC Radio Manchester that one of the passengers appeared to have parachuted from the plane as it went down.
Stephanie Mills said that she saw a large yellow parachute caught up in a nearby pylon.
She said: “There wasn’t any noise, I didn’t hear anything but there is a huge yellow parachute. There is a lot of police and helicopters here too.”
Several incident response units and helicopters are understood to be at the scene.
Manchester Evening News reports the aircraft took off from the Midlands earlier this morning.
It is then believed to have started to lose altitude over Littleborough before crashing on land between Blastone Edge and Hollingworth Lake.
Greater Manchester Police said: “Emergency services are responding to reports of a light aircraft crash in the Littleborough area.
“We are currently in attendance to establish the full circumstances and assess any casualties.
“A scene is in place whilst emergency service workers conduct their enquiries and people are asked to avoid the area as this work is carried out.”
A scene has been established around the area near Hollingworth Lake, LittleboroughCredit: MEN MediaUPDATE:
A light aircraft has crashed in Littleborough this afternoon sparking a huge emergency services response.
Police, paramedics and firefighters are currently on the scene following the crash. It has not yet been confirmed whether anybody is seriously injured.
The M.E.N understands that two people were believed to be on board the plane when it crashed. A picture shows what appears to be parachute attached to a pylon near the scene, with witnesses speaking of seeing it deployed before the crash.
In a statement, a GMP spokesperson said: “Emergency services are responding to reports of a light aircraft crash in the Littleborough area. We are currently in attendance to establish the full circumstances and assess any casualties.
“A scene is in place whilst emergency service workers conduct their enquiries and people are asked to avoid the area as this work is carried out.”
The crash is believed to have happened on land near to Hollingworth Lake and Blackstone Edge.
Follow our live blog below for the latest updates on this incident as we get them.
BREAKING: Picture of the crash site
This picture shows the site of the aircraft crash.
A yellow parachute can be seen hanging from the nearby pylon.
Witness heard ‘sound of a misfiring rocket’
I’ve just spoken to Martin Kelly, who was waiting at a bus stop in Elland in West Yorkshire around 11.30am when he heard what he believes to have been the aircraft fly over.
He said: “It just didn’t sound right. It was very low for a start and it appeared to be malfunctioning. It sounded very, very strange.
“I was stood at the bus stop with a woman and we both looked up and said ‘What was that?’. It was a loud droning noise, like the the sound of a misfiring rocket, but it wasn’t constant.
“We get a lot of light aircraft flying over here, so I am familiar with their engine noise and something was definitely amiss.”
Local resident describes the strong winds in the area and the moment she saw the emergency services
Speaking to reporters, local resident Jennifer Wakelin said:
“I passed by a load of ambulances coming up and then got up the road and thought they were coming up here.
“You could just see ambulances, police cars and fire engines.
“The farmer was walking down and he told me what had happened.
“You can see the parachute hanging from the pylon over there.”
She added:
“It is a very windy day, I’m surprised I haven’t lost some trees.
“You don’t hear anything around here but my granddaughter heard all the sirens and ambulances.”
Residents unable to travel around in the area
Our reporter Miranda has been speaking to local residents in the area.
She says residents have told they have been unable to leave their homes or travel anywhere in the area due to emergency services blocking the road.
Parachute pictured dangling from pylon
Nigel Stanley, from nearby Hollingworth Lake Caravan Park, said the crashed plane appeared to a be a four seater Cirrius SR22. Mr Stanley said the aircraft appeared to have released its onboard parachute before getting tangled in an electricity pylon.
He said: “We saw a lot of police earlier and that alerted us that something was wrong. Where the pylons run along the bottom of Blackstone moor there is a parachute caught in one of the pylons.
“The mist is now so low on the moor, but you can still see the parachute caught on the pylon.”
Statement from AAIB: Investigation has been launched
The Air Accidents Investigations Branch has issued a statement on this incident now.
The statement says:
“An accident involving a light aircraft which occurred today (3 February) near Rochdale, Greater Manchester has been notified to the AAIB.
“An investigation has been launched and a multidisciplinary team of inspectors are on their way to the accident site.”
Map shows where road closure is in place
This map shows the location of the road closure near the crash site in Littleborough.
Aircraft equipped with a parachute system
The M.E.N understands that the aircraft involved in the crash is equipped with a parachute system.
It can be deployed in an emergency.
LIVE from the scene
Watch our live report from the scene below.
Farmer saw ‘massive response’ in the area
Pete Robinson, a farmer from Shaw, said he saw a ‘massive response’ in the area as he was feeding his sheep.
He told the BBC:
“So I went up into a top field and saw what I thought at the time to be a paraglider on the moor edge, engines and lights everywhere.”
Mr Robinson said he saw emergency crews running towards the pylon.
He added:
“Hopefully they will be okay because the wind is horrendous up on the moor edge.”
Person believed to have evacuated aircraft using parachute
One of the people onboard the aircraft is believed to have evacuated using a parachute.
An image shared on social media shows what appears to be a parachute caught in a nearby pylon.
Stephanie Mills, from Dickey Steps Riding School, told BBC Radio Manchester that a huge yellow parachute could be seen attached to the pylon.
“There wasn’t any noise, I didn’t hear anything but there is a huge yellow parachute. There is a lot of police and helicopters here too,” she said.
Our reporter Miranda is on the scene
More pictures of emergency crews
Here’s some pictures taken by our photographer this afternoon.
More video footage from the scene
Here’s another clip of crews on the scene in Littleborough.
Huge emergency service response after plane crash near Littleborough
Fire service: Crews arrived on scene at around 11.30am
A spokesperson for the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service confirmed crews arrived on the scene at around 11.30am.
Firefighters remain on the scene supporting crews from GMP and NWAS.
Video of the huge emergency response
Here’s a clip of the huge emergeny services response in Littleborough this afternoon.
Whittaker Lane is closed off
Whittaker Lane is currently shut off due to the emergency response.
‘Extremely windy’ near crash site
Our reporter Helena is on the scene now.
Emergency vehicles lined up on the scene
Here’s some more pictures of the emergency response.
More pictures of the huge emergency response
Dozens of emergency services vehicles are on the scene.
Pictures of the huge emergency response
Here’s some pictures from the scene of the crash this afternoon.
Crews ‘assessing any casualties’
A spokesperson for GMP said emergency crews are currently ‘assessing any casualties’.
They are ‘working to establish the full circumstances’ of the crash.
Two people believed to be onboard the aircraft
The M.E.N understands that two people were believed to be onboard the aircraft when it crashed.
Everything we know so far about the light aircraft crash
You can read everything we know so far about the crash HERE.
Police, firefighters and paramedics responding
There is a huge emergency response on the scene of the crash.
Crews from all emergency services are at the crash site this afternoon.
Map of where aircraft has crashed
This map shows the exact location of the crash near Littleborough.
Crash believed to have happened near Blackstone Edge
The light aircraft appears to have crashed on land between Blackstone Edge and Hollingworth Lake.
Aircraft believed to have taken off from the Midlands
This flight map on Flight Radar appears to show the light aircraft that has crashed near Littleborough.
The plane took off from the Midlands this morning, before it appeared to lose altitude.
Helicopters over the area
This aircraft map shows multiple helicopters over the area of the crash.
GMP statement: Crews responding to crash involving light aircraft
A GMP spokesperson said:
“Emergency services are responding to reports of a light aircraft crash in the Littleborough area.
“We are currently in attendance to establish the full circumstances and assess any casualties.
“A scene is in place whilst emergency service workers conduct their enquiries and people are asked to avoid the area as this work is carried out.”
Huge emergency response to incident
A huge emergency response has been scrambled to the scene this afternoon.
Police, firefighters and paramedics are on the scene.
Locals have also reported seeing multiple incident response units near Hollingworth Lake.
