Five People Reportedly Aboard The Aircraft Fatally Injured

A Puerto Rico Air National Guard WC-130 has gone down near Savannah/Hilton Head airport with five people on board, according to media reports.

Fox News reports that the cargo plane had just departed from an unnamed airport in Georgia. It was headed for Davis-Monthan AFB in Arizona.

The plane went down near Savannah/Hilton Head airport just before noon. The Chatham County Emergency Management Agency tweeted "There has been a plane crash at the intersection of Hwy 21 at Crossgate Rd. Roads will be shut down. Please avoid the area.”

A post-impact fire ensued after the accident. There has been no indication of the status of the five people on board.

CNN reports that witness Denver Goodwin, who works for a wrecker service located near the accident scene, said "The ground shook like a bomb was going off."

UPDATE 05.02.18 1405 EDT

Media reports indicated that the Air Force has confirmed that the five people on board the aircraft were fatally injured in the accident. In a Tweet, the USAF said "While performing a training mission, a U.S. C-130 "Hercules" cargo plane from the Puerto Rico Air National Guard went about 11:30 a.m. today near the Savannah Hilton Head International Airport with 5 people on board."

The WC-130 was attched to the 165th Airlift Wing in Puerto Rico and is used for weather reconnaissance.

(Image from Twitter via Savannah Professional Firefighters Association)

FMI: twitter.com/iaff574?lang=en