Two men injured in Saturday plane crash

By Lisa Majors-Duff

The accident, which is being investigated by officials with the Federal Aviation Administration, occurred at about 11:45 a.m. Dec. 14, according to Jackson County Sheriff Jimmy Ashe.

The pilot, Garfield Emanuel Humphreays, 23, and his passenger, Troy Delarno Bogle, 22, were on their way back to Jacksonville, where they are stationed with the U.S. Marine Corps, Ashe said. The pair had been attending an aircraft mechanics certification class in Nashville, Tenn.

"They were attempting to land at the Greenville (S.C.) airport to refuel when they experienced heavy cloud cover," Ashe said.

As is common practice, the pilot began to look for a hole in the clouds in an effort to visually survey the ground. As he did so, his altitude dropped to tree level, the sheriff said.

"His altitude was not high enough; he hit the tree tops, which caused him to crash," said Ashe.

Both Humphreays and Bogle experienced minor lacerations when the plane came to rest on its top. With his cell phone, Bogle placed a distress call to 911, said Ashe.

"Almost simultaneously, an aviation transmission service also received a distress signal from the plane's GPS system. They also placed a call to 911," he said.

Emergency crews with both the Glenville-Cashiers Rescue Squad and the Cashiers-Glenville Fire Department, as well as local law enforcement, were dispatched to the scene. Humphreays and Bogle were transported to Highlands-Cashiers Hospital, where they were treated and released, the sheriff said.

After the Sheriff's Office completed its investigation, which included interviewing the pilot and his passenger, the site, which is on U.S. Forest Service property, was secured for FAA officials, Ashe said. Humphreays and Bogle returned to their Marine Corps base Sunday.

Back to Archive: 12/19/02.