Skydiving plane crashes in Wilson

WILSON, N.Y. (WIVB) - Investigators say it is a miracle that anyone was able to survive a horrific airplane crash that happened Sunday night.  The airplane pilot and five skydiving jumpers were taken to the hospital.

News 4 is told one is in critical condition and the others are in serious condition.

The plane crash happened at Hollands International Airport which is the location of Frontier Skydivers Club.

The plane is broken into pieces and it has been impossible to get near the scene.

Sources say a crash like this has never happened before. Sources also say a Cessna 185 crashed at the end of the runway upon takeoff at about 2 PM Sunday afternoon.

The plane was 30 to 40 feet in the air. The pilot and five jumpers were taken to ECMC. It was the seventh or eighth load of jumpers for Sunday.

Safety and training adviser, John Huber, tells News 4 there was no indication of any problems.

Club members and staff are extremely upset.

"Club members are all depressed at this point and time. We are all a big family so we know each other.  Skydiving is fairly safe but accidents do happen. Far fewer accidents happen sky diving than car accidents or motorcycle accidents or ATV accidents, so the statistics are far lower ," said Huber.

The cause does remain under investigation, but News 4 is told the FAA is on the scene and will be handling the investigation.

5 of the 6 people have been released from the hospital. Find out more information here.