ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- A plane went off a runway and into Tampa Bay at Albert Whitted Airport Tuesday night.
It happened just after 7 p.m. St. Petersburg Fire Rescue officials say a two passenger Lance Air model plane with one person on board skidded off the runway.
The planes canopy was visible when firefighters arrived.
Rescue crews say the pilot, Gilbert Nadeau, 58, of St. Petersburg, wasn't injured in the crash.
Firefighter paramedic Greg Harvin said Nadeau told him he was coming in for a landing on runway three but was going a little too fast and just ran out of runway.
A passerby boater picked up Nadeau and brought him to shore where paramedics were able to examine him. Nadeau had no injuries according to Harvin, but he was shaken up quite a bit.
Captain John Adams stated that his main objective is to keep the plane afloat so that no contaminates leak into the water.
Adams was having the Marine Unit work in conjunction with the Hazardous Materials team to place booms around the plane to keep it from sinking.
