A pilot was seriously injured when his small plane went down around 8:30 Monday morning in Dawson County.
Tim Satterfield, Deputy Chief of Dawson County Emergency Services, said the plane made an emergency landing at Atlanta Motor Sports Park just off Highway 53.
"Units arrived on the scene and found a Piper seven-seater plane that made an emergency landing on the cart track," Satterfield said.
While the pilot did sustain serious injuries, he was able to tell emergency workers some information about what happened prior to the crash.
"He stated he was having mechanical difficulties - he had some smoke in the cockpit," Satterfield said. "He left Gainesville after refueling...he was headed toward the Chicago area."
The pilot, described only as a man in his 50s, was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center for treatment.
Because the plane had a full fuel tank, Satterfield said there was a small fuel spill that his crew members had to clean up.
No one on the ground was injured, according to Satterfield.
He said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was called to investigate.
