MAYFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio— Officials said a training procedure gone wrong resulted in an emergency landing behind Mayfield Middle School.
Sergeant Ray Santiago of the Ohio State Highway Patrol said the accident happened just after 11 a.m. Tuesday morning.
Santiago said three people were on board the plane for a training exercise. Catherine Terez, a 27-year-old student from University Heights was at the controls with her trainer,Laurence Rohl, 79 of Willoughby.
Santiago said they were practicing a maneuver designed to simulate a stall when something went wrong and the engine failed.
Santiago said Rohl took control of the aircraft and conducted an emergency landing in the field behind Mayfield Middle School. The three people on board were taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
Both Santiago and school officials stressed that no students or staff were ever in any danger.
“Both faculty, I know first responders, and I’m sure parents are very relieved to hear that no students were injured, and that the crash scene itself doesn’t pose any additional hazards to the students or anyone in the area,” Santiago said.
As of now, officials said it is unclear what caused the plane to malfunction.
“Looking at what we have and the situation that they were dealing with, yes, we’re very grateful,” he said. “The person that took over the controls did what they could.”
