Friday, May 28th, 2021

1 hurt in plane crash

Crop duster crashed in creek shortly after takeoff

By Sydney Albert
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

The Ohio State Highway Patrol responded to an airplane crash Thursday morning near Guadalupe and Cassella-Montezuma Roads south of Grand Lake. Celina and Montezuma fire departments assisted at the scene. The pilot's condition was unavailable Thursday night.

CELINA - A Defiance man reportedly suffered fuel and chemical burns after the crop duster he was piloting crashed Thursday near Guadalupe and Cassella-Montezuma Roads south of Grand Lake.
The pilot's condition was unavailable Thursday night from an official at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton.
First responders rushed to the scene of the plane's crash landing at Beaver Creek at about 7:50 a.m.
According to information provided by the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Mark J. Gaerte, 43, had left from Lakefield Airport near Montezuma in a Grumman G-164B bi wing aircraft. Shortly after take off, the plane failed to gain altitude and went down in a marsh southeast of the runway. The plane overturned and came to a rest upside down, partially in Beaver Creek.
Gaerte was taken from the scene by a Mercer County squad to Mercer County Community Hospital in Coldwater. He was later transported by Lutheran Care Flight to Miami Valley Hospital.
Lakefield Airport manager Steve Shinabery, who assisted at the scene, said Gaerte had managed to crawl out of the wreckage after the plane had landed on its top. Shinabery said Gaerte suffered what appeared to be chemical and fuel burns.
Gaerte's plane was moved to the airport after the crash, and Shinabery said representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board would be investigating the cause of the crash. The Federal Aviation Administration has also been notified, according to the OSHP.
Montezuma and Franklin Township fire departments reportedly cut off a section of wetlands from Grand Lake near the crash site. Jet fuel, as well as the fungicide and insecticide being carried by the crop duster, leaked into the creek, said Mike Robbins, director of the Mercer County Emergency Management Agency.
Cleanup crews were already on the scene Thursday afternoon, Robbins said. The fuel likely could get skimmed off the water's surface. The wetland area affected by the leaked materials likely could be cleaned in three days, Robbins continued.
Also assisting at the scene were officials from Coldwater Emergency Medical Service, the Mercer County Sheriff's Office and Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
See photo album.
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

The tail of a crop duster rests in Beaver Creek south of Grand Lake Thursday afternoon. The plane crashed shortly before 8 a.m. not long after taking off from Lakefield Airport near Montezuma.

Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

Montezuma firefighter Justin Stachler surveys the site of a crop duster crash after firefighters turned over the plane which came to rest upside down.

Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

One of the tires from a crop duster rests on the ground after the plane crashed Thursday morning south of Grand Lake.

Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

A crop duster is lifted from Beaver Creek south of Grand Lake Thursday after it crashed not long after taking off from Lakefield Airport near Montezuma.

Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

A helmet from the plane rests in the grass near the crash site.

Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard

Emergency crews work the scene of a crop duster crash after the plane was lifted out of Beaver Creek.

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Those seeking lodgings during the busy festival season have a number of options in the Grand Lake area.
Hotels, motels, inns and camping grounds are available to fit the needs of visitors enjoying the variety of summer activities in Mercer and Auglaize counties.