Doorbell camera captures aftermath of Florida plane crash that killed pilot

Apr 20, 2026 - 12:00
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Doorbell camera captures aftermath of Florida plane crash that killed pilot

A pilot was killed when a small plane went down in Pasco County, Florida, on Sunday, landing in the backyard of a home.

A neighbor’s doorbell camera captured the moments after the Cessna C402 crashed in the residential area in Wesley Chapel, about 24 miles north of Tampa, at around 8:35 a.m.

The FAA said only the pilot, who has not been identified, was on board the plane that departed from Tampa North Aero Park.

In the footage, resident Christina Galbiati can be heard saying “Oh my God” as a thick plume of smoke rises in the distance.

“It was loud, it sounded mechanical, it sounded rumbling… like a gurgle,” Galbiati said in an interview with NBC News. “Everything seemed fine, but then I saw it curve and then just go straight down.”

Her family ran over to help, but there wasn’t much they could do.

The wreckage was “ash, just ash and rubble,” she said.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office said one person was fatally injured.

Galbiati says she witnessed what she feels was a “heroic moment,” in which a last-minute decision by the pilot may have averted greater loss.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating what caused the crash.

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