Couple escape injury in plane crash

APEX -- A single-engine plane crashed in a Chatham County horse pasture Wednesday after taking off from a private airport.

The two people on the plane, a married couple, escaped without injuries, according to police.

The Chatham County Sheriff's Office received a call at 12:01 p.m. that a plane had crashed on N.C. 751, near the Durham County line.

The plane had departed from Cox Airport in Apex minutes before but quickly developed engine problems, police said. Smoke filled the cockpit, and the plane caught fire.

The pilot, who has more than 30 years of flying experience, landed in a horse pasture south of Seagrove Supply. The plane crashed through a fence before bursting into flames, police said.

Emergency crews extinguished the fire. Traffic around the area was rerouted until 2 p.m. Neighbors were able to gather the horses in the field and secure them, according to reports.

Police said they were investigating the cause of the fire. The names of the pilot and his wife are being withheld until the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board can investigate.