Two people walked away from a Sunday afternoon plane crash near Ararat.
Ralph and Mary Jane Griffin had just taken off from the air strip at their home at 425 Towe Road just before 5:30 p.m. According to John Shelton, director of Surry County Emergency Services, the plane lost power, the tail clipped a cable line next to a power pole, which spun the plane around before it came to a rest in a field near Towe and Ararat roads.
Investigators with the Federal Aviation Administration will be here to look into the reason for the crash on Monday, Shelton said.
“They were really fortunate,” Shelton said of the Griffins.
According to N.C. Highway Patrol Sgt. Mitch Haunn, Mary Jane Griffin had some cuts and scrapes, but the couple walked home and refused treatment.
Shelton said investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board will also be investigating the crash.
Some residents temporarily lost power and cable television service as a result of the line being hit, Shelton said.
Ralph Griffin is a retired airline pilot, officials said.
The Ararat Volunteer Fire Department, Pilot Knob Volunteer Fire Department responded to the scene, along with the Pilot Mountain Rescue Squad, the Mount Airy Rescue Squad, Surry County Haz-Mat, the Surry County Fire Marshal’s office, the Surry County Sheriff’s Office and Surry County Emergency Services and the North Carolina Highway Patrol.
Reach Mondee Tilley at mtilley@heartlandpublications.com or at 719-1930.







