Aircraft Down Mammoth Lakes

[Exsmokey]

Just in - 15 minutes ago. 4 seat aircraft crashed at Upper Twin Lakes, just east of Twin Falls, 1.5 miles west of the Town of Mammoth Lakes. Mammoth Lakes Fire Department, Mammoth Lakes PD, and U.S. Forest Service fire and law enforcement on scene. Mono County Search and Rescue en route. No fire, most MLFD resources being returned.

Plane occupied by two, one possible 11-44. Units on scene were trying to extricate other occupant. Present radio traffic sounds like the other victim may not have made it. Plane had just fueled at Mammoth Airport prior to accident.

Last paragraph's information is strictly from monitoring radio traffic and cannot be considered official by any means, and is subject to change as more information becomes available.

[Exsmokey]

Plane came to rest in a small meadow 300 feet southwest of the Twin Lakes General Store. Apparently no structures damaged. No danger of fire. Fuel is leaking into the meadow and may get into Upper Twin Lakes. Unknown quantities on the fuel.

Again, radio traffic only and somewhat subject to interpretation.

More updates when info or additional traffic is received.

[Exsmokey]

Mono County Sheriffs Department on scene. U.S. Forest Service resource adviser en route. Resource adviser surveys potential damage to resources. It sounds like there might be some haz-mat involved, which could flow into the lake. Normally the Calif. Dept. of Fish and Game responds to these types of haz-mat situations. If fuel soaks into the meadow in sufficient quantity the effect could be long term as meadows form and heal very slowly i.e., measured in the hundreds of years.

Some speculation is contained in the previous posts. Those should be obvious.

One of the assistant fire chiefs is a former co-worker of mine in the Forest Service. He moved on from the Forest Service due to excessive workloads and stress. Picked up the MLFD job a few years later. He is rarely shaken but his voice sounded a bit stressed on this one.

Just in, (2) 11-44's.

[Exsmokey]

Per Mono County deputy on scene, DFG to be notified, leakage into a small creek. All MLFD units have been released. This is the second fatal aircraft crash near Mammoth Lakes this year.

[Bobrose]

My husband is up at twin lakes and watched the aircraft try and make it up over the falls clipped trees lost a wing and went down. Word is 2 people did not make it.