One person was killed and another injured when a small plane crashed in Little Cottonwood Canyon on Sunday.
The plane crashed in the Albion Basin area, a bit over a mile east of the town of Alta, around 5:21 p.m. Sunday, Hannah Gorski, communications director for the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office, told reporters Sunday night.
Two people were in the plane when it crashed, Gorski said. One was dead at the scene; the other was flown by medical helicopter to the University of Utah Hospital, where they were in critical condition as of Sunday, Gorski said.
The identities of the two people were not released, nor was any information about the plane’s itinerary immediately available, Gorski said.
Alta Mayor Roger Bourke said he had seen the site from a distance, but didn’t give reporters many details about the crash.
“What I saw is an aircraft on the ground where it shouldn’t be,” Bourke said, adding that “our hearts go out to the loved ones of the people” on the plane.
The sheriff’s office was working with Alta town marshals and Unified Police to secure the location, Gorski said. Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to arrive Monday to scope out the crash site, she said.
Gorski urged people to stay out of the Albion Basin area. “There’s a lot going on out here,” she told reporters. “For everyone’s safety, stay out of the Albion Basin area until further notice.”
The nearby Albion Basin Campground was scheduled to close for the season on Monday, Gorski said.