Three people were rescued safely after a small Cessna aircraft made an emergency water landing near Mukilteo Lighthouse Park on Sunday evening, according to city officials and the U.S. Coast Guard.
The crash occurred around 5:30 p.m. near a boat dock at the park, located at 609 Front Street.
Officials say the plane lost power in the air, prompting the pilot to contact air traffic controllers at nearby Paine Field Airport to report the need for an emergency landing.
The pilot successfully brought the plane down just offshore, where bystanders and nearby boaters quickly jumped in to help the three people on board — including the pilot — exit the aircraft.
The Mukilteo Fire Department arrived moments later and evaluated the individuals.
No injuries were reported.
After the occupants were safely removed, the aircraft sank into the water.
The Coast Guard established a safety zone around the wreckage, which remains submerged.
KIRO 7 spoke with a young woman named Zayda who was one of the people who rushed in to help the people on the plane.
“But then everyone started like rushing over and I was like okay I need to run faster,” Zayda said. “And so I ran like really as fast as I can and I was just really hoping that I could help somebody if I needed to,” she continued.
Her friend, Mya, also saw the crash. She says at first, she thought it was a boat trying to dock by the park.
“These things that you see happen on the news and things like that, but it’s never going to happen in front of your face,” Mya said.
Zayda recently became a certified lifeguard through Goldfish Swim School in Mill Creek. She says her training came in key helping the woman out of the water.
“I just got my lifeguard certification so it was kind of helpful to like know those skills while I was going into that,” Zayda said.
Zayda says she is thankful she was able to help out in anyway and believes if it wasn’t for people responding near by, who knows what could’ve happened to the three on the plane.
“I think the only reason that was possible was because of that one guy that jumped in and helped the passenger out,” she said.
Officials say they are coordinating with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and other agencies as part of the response.
“We’d like to highlight the boaters and bystanders that immediately helped, and Mukilteo Fire Department for their quick response,” city officials said in a statement.
Everett police also responded to the incident.
As of Sunday morning, no further details about the investigation or aircraft recovery have been released.
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