2 die after small plane crashes at Ohio dealership

A plane crashed into a Buick-GMC dealership in southeast Ohio early Tuesday, police said.

The 1974 Beechcraft King Air E90 crashed into Pioneer Buick-GMC’s parking lot in Marietta, Ohio, around 7:15 a.m. local time, a press release from the Ohio State Highway Patrol said.

The pilot and a second occupant were killed in the crash. No injuries were reported on the ground.

There was significant damage to multiple vehicles and the dealership building.

Rod Taylor, general manager of Pioneer Buick-GMC, said the plane had come from Columbus, Ohio, and was flying to nearby Parkersburg, W.Va.

He said 12 to 15 vehicles had been lost in the crash, mainly due to burning fuel. The dealership building was “scorched,” but Taylor said it was nothing that couldn’t be cleaned off.

“Fortunately, the fire trucks got here fast enough, and there wasn’t any real damage to the building,” Taylor told Automotive News. “Nothing that a power washer or some paint can’t fix.”

The dealership is closed in the aftermath, but some staff remain in the building.

Pioneer Buick-GMC is part of Nourse Automotive Group, which owns two more stores in Marietta, nine other new-car dealerships across southern Ohio and northern West Virginia, as well as eight used-car lots, Taylor said.

“It’s a tragic situation,” Taylor said. “For two families, whatever they’ll be facing in the next two days.”