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Airplane Crashes into Home in Hermantown

Press Release | October 2, 2022

For Immediate Release – October 2, 2022

Airplane Crashes into Home in Hermantown

Hermantown, Minn. –  Just before midnight on October 1, the Hermantown Police Department was notified by the control tower at Duluth International Airport a small airplane had left radar and was believed to be crashed. The control tower advised the last location on radar was 1 to 1.5 miles south of the airport.

Both police and fire departments from surrounding agencies responded to the area and located the wreckage of a Cessna 172 airplane in the 5100 block of Arrowhead Road. The airplane hit the second floor of a home before coming to rest in the backyard of the property. The two occupants of the home were not injured.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been notified, and investigators are still working at the crash scene to determine the number of deceased individuals from the airplane. Members of the public should avoid the area, as there are significant power outages associated with the accident.

This is an active investigation, and no additional information is available at this time.

UPDATED: 7:20 a.m., October 2

All three individuals in the Cessna 172 died in the airplane crash. Two males from Burnsville and a female from St. Paul – all in their early 30s – have been confirmed deceased as a result of the accident. Identification of the individuals will be released after notification of their families.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will be continuing to investigate the crash site.

UPDATED: 3:30 p.m., October 2

Authorities have released the identities of the three individuals who died in the airplane accident late yesterday night in Hermantown.

Alyssa Schmidt, age 32, of St. Paul, and her brother, Matthew Schmidt, age 31, of Burnsville, were passengers in the Cessna 172. Tyler Fretland, age 32, of Burnsville, was the airplane’s pilot.

NTSB is at the accident site performing its investigation. Any additional information will be released in concert with the NTSB and is not expected today.

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For more information, contact: Joe Wicklund, Communications Director, City of Hermantown at [email protected] or 218.729.3614.