2 trapped in a plane dangling 100 feet in the air from power lines after the crash in Maryland

Two people are trapped on a small plane that became entangled in live wires about 100 feet above the ground after it crashed into power lines in Maryland Sunday night.

The single-engine plane crashed into power lines near Goshen Road and Rothbury Drive around 5:30 p.m. as it prepared its descent to Montgomery County Airpark in Gaithersburg, authorities said.

“[The two people aboard the plane] seem fine at this point, but they are in a very precarious situation as they are dangling about 100 feet and everything is still live,” said Pete Piringer, spokesman for Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Services at the scene.

The collision left tens of thousands of people in the area without power on Sunday evening.

According to local utility Pepco, 85,000 to 90,000 homes and businesses in Montgomery County were affected by the “widespread” outages. Several traffic lights failed and elevators were also affected, Piringer said.

Rescue workers are initially focusing on rescuing the two people floating on the plane unharmed before restoration work can begin, officials said.

Montgomery Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said rescue workers are communicating with the two people on the plane but are unable to reach them until they can make sure power lines are grounded.

“While there is a major power outage in Montgomery County, there is no other way to determine if tower access is safe until it is grounded or bonded,” Goldstein said at a news conference.

Crews must first secure the wires with clamps or cords to ensure there is no static electricity or residual energy that could electrocute rescue teams or the passengers of the aircraft. They then have to attach the plane to the tower structure to prevent movement and vibration, the chief said.

Once safe, the teams will get the people off the plane. A large crane is also on site to help.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane, a single-engine Mooney M20J, was coming from Westchester County Airport in White Plains, NY, when it crashed into the wires.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.

It’s not known when power will be restored for thousands in the dark, Pepco said.