Plane crashes in the Florida Everglades, pilot waits overnight for rescue

A pilot waited in the gator-and-python-infested Florida Everglades for nine hours after crashing a small plane, authorities say.

According to the Broward Sheriff, the pilot was the only person aboard the single-engine Cessna Skyhawk 172M aircraft when it crash-landed around 2:20 a.m. on Tuesday. The plane crashed around Mack’s Fish Camp near Krome Ave. in the Everglades.

The pilot was rescued from the scene and transported by Miami Dade Fire Air Rescue to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood. He sustained minor injuries from the crash.

When the rescue chopper arrived at the crash site, they found the pilot standing on the plane’s wing. Besides the wing he was standing on, the rest of the plane was mostly submerged in the swampy water.

While hovering over the crashed plane, the rescue chopper dangled a first responder on a rope to rescue the pilot. Quickly, the rescue team hoisted the stranded pilot up to the chopper.

#BSFR is operating on the scene of an aircraft down in the Florida Everglades near Krome Ave in the area of Mack’s Fish Camp One patient located. Rescue in progress. pic.twitter.com/3ddHCsBi48 — Broward Sheriff (@browardsheriff) October 31, 2023

It was also not immediately known where the plane was traveling when it went down. But Broward officials said the plane is believed to be based out of a Miami-Dade flight school.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash.

Broward Sheriff’s Fire Rescue learned about the plane crash around 10 a.m. on Tuesday. Miami-Dade Fire Rescue was requested to respond with their helicopter to perform a hoist operation, to remove the patient from the aircraft safely, authorities said.