A small plane crash at the North Little Rock Municipal Airport killed one person Thursday afternoon, officials said.
Two people were on board the plane at the time of the 1:32 p.m. crash, and the second was transported to the hospital, North Little Rock city spokesman Nathan Hamilton said.
The Cessna 310 crashed within the fenced area surrounding the small airport and caught on fire after impact, police spokesman Sgt. Brian Dedrick said. Officials said the fire was extinguished within about 10 minutes.
The crash occurred "a good distance away from the runway," and the airport remained open to any necessary air traffic around 2:20 p.m., Dedrick said.
Fire Marshal Chief John Pflasterer, spokesman for the department, said during a news conference that the injured person's condition was serious as of Thursday afternoon but that the injuries are not life-threatening.
Identities of the two victims had not been released as of Thursday evening.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the plane was registered to Lashbrook Inc. of Sherwood.
North Little Rock fire and police departments remained on scene about 3:25 p.m. just south of Central Arkansas Water property off West Maryland Avenue. A police presence was expected to continue throughout the day.
The Pulaski County coroner's office had placed the victim's body in a van about 3:20 p.m. and left the property shortly before 3:30 p.m.
The aircraft came to a rest on a hillside on airport property and caused severe damage to chain-link fencing as it crashed, narrowly missing water tanks, Pflasterer said.
Pflasterer said the plane took off from North Little Rock and "experienced some kind of problem." He was not able to provide additional information regarding what led to the crash.
The Cessna 310 is a low-wing, six-seat aircraft powered by two piston propeller-driven engines. The aircraft was Cessna's first twin-engine model and last produced in 1980.
The FAA was on scene for much of the Thursday afternoon, and the National Transportation Safety Board will arrive Friday morning, Pflasterer said.
Check back with Arkansas Online for updates on this developing story, and read Friday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.
Noel Oman of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette contributed to this report.
