DARTMOUTH, Mass. — A husband and wife were killed, and a third person was hurt, when a plane crashed along a major highway in Massachusetts during a nasty fall nor’easter on Monday morning, officials said.
Troopers responding to Interstate 195 in Dartmouth around 8:15 a.m. found a fixed-wing, single-engine Socata TBM 700 that had crashed in the woods on the westbound side of the highway near Reed Road, according to the Bristol District Attorney’s Office and Massachusetts State Police.
Thomas Perkins, 68, and his wife, 66-year-old Agatha Perkins, both of Middletown, Rhode Island, were found in the fuselage of the aircraft, which came to rest in the grassy median, the DA’s office said. They were pronounced dead at the scene.
Video from the scene:
The third victim, a woman who was driving on the highway in a silver Hyundai Sonata, was rushed to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Her name hasn’t been released.
Both sides of I-195 were closed at Exit 19 for several hours after the crash.
State police said the plane caught fire after impact with the ground.
Drone video showed the plane’s fuselage resting in the median and debris scattered nearby.
A preliminary investigation indicated that the pilot may have been attempting to land at a nearby airport.
“The plane may have been attempting to land at New Bedford Regional Airport, though it does not appear that the pilot provided the airport with a flight plan or the number of souls aboard the aircraft,” state police said in a statement.
Video captured by a Boston 25 photographer showed a slew of emergency responders gathered around where the crash victims were recovered. The damaged Sonata was spotted nearby.
0 of 13
Because of the ongoing government shutdown, the Federal Aviation Administration wasn’t able to comment on the crash.
“Due to a lapse in funding, the FAA is not responding to routine media inquiries,” a statement shared with Boston 25 read.
The crash came on a day when wind gusts up to 55 mph and rainfall totals up to four inches were expected from the storm.
Troopers assigned to the Bristol County State Police Detective Unit and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
©2025 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/7QOJU3BNCJERBNKJC5LWTBYFLU.png)
