PEMBROKE PINES, FLA. (WSVN) - A small plane has crashed outside a hospital in Pembroke Pines, injuring the two women on board.
7Skyforce hovered above the scene of the crash along the 800 block of East Cypress Drive, just north of South Florida State Hospital, just before noon on Friday.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the Cessna C172P crashed shortly after taking off from North Perry Airport in Florida, at around 11:30 a.m.
The aircraft ended up upside down on in a grassy area.
“Shortly after it took off, it experienced engine failure, had to make a turn, probably trying to go back to the airport, didn’t have the altitude, hit a tree, went into a ditch here and flipped over,” said Pembroke Pines Mayor Angelo Castillo.
According to an X post from Pembroke Pines Police, both female occupants on board were “conscious and breathing.”
The plane belongs to Blue Sky Aviation, a flight school based out of North Perry, according to Castillo.
“This was another training school crash. This particular training school is owned by Pembroke Pines City Commissioner Jay Schwartz who was here looking out for his plane and for his staff member and for his student,” said Castillo.
They were transported to an area hospital as trauma alerts. Their conditions are unknown.
No additional injuries have been reported.
“Thankfully apparently there was a good Samaritan who is not here anymore but who helped those individuals get out of the plane after he saw it crash,” said Castillo.
The FAA is investigating this crash.
But it isn’t the first time a plane has crashed in Pembroke Pines recently. According to the Broward County Aviation Department, 13 crashes and 20 incidents have take place at North Perry between 2020 and 2024.
It has been an ongoing frustration for Castillo who has looked for solutions.
“It has become an ongoing problem and a menace in the City of Pembroke Pines,” he said. “This is a routine thing in Pembroke Pines. These crashes continue to happen.”
As the years pass, residents’ concerns grow louder as they push the city and the county to do more.
“We’re tired of planes coming down, not only at the airport, but on our street — where we shop, where we bank — and in the last crash, it was at someone’s home,” said area resident Dennis Hinds during an Aug. 2025 town hall.
Castillo believes North Perry, one of the state’s busiest general aviation airports, could be incompatible with a densely populated city.
“The facility has become incompatible with the rest of the city,” the mayor said on Friday.
In the fall of 2025, county leaders told residents they are listening to their concerns.
“We are concerned about the perception of North Perry Airport in the eyes of the residents,” said Broward County Aviation Department official Michael Nonnemacher.
Later in October of that same year, Pembroke Pines leaders asked Broward to conduct a safety study.
In a statement to 7News that same month, the Broward County Aviation Department said that in their annual screening, the airport has received a perfect score with zero discrepancies in 25 years.
Castillo remains unconvinced after Friday’s incident.
“We have to ascribe seriousness to the threat that this airport presents to the City of Pembroke Pines. I’ve had it, the residents of Pembroke Pines have had it. So we’re calling on Broward County to do what they have to do, to make this place safe and if they can’t make it safe, they need to close it the hell down,” he said.
7News has reached out to Broward County about the crash and Castillo’s comments, but as of Friday afternoon has not heard back.
In a statement, North Perry Airport officials said in part: “As a Broward County-owned and operated airport, safety is a top priority at HWO. Earlier in May, the general aviation facility passed its Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) annual inspection with zero discrepancy (no safety, regulatory, or operational violations) for the 26th consecutive year. FDOT’s inspection, which is required to maintain the airport’s operating license, includes a review of airfield markings and signs, runway/taxiway lights, approach slopes, and safety areas. While the County will not speculate as to the cause or causes of this accident, we will be cooperating with the authorities as they conduct their investigation.”
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