COCONUT CREEK, Fla. - Investigators on Sunday removed the wreckage of a two-seat plane that crashed into a house and burst into flames, killing a Georgia home builder, authorities said.
The pilot, Gerald Ballard, 58, of Gainesville, was the only person aboard the plane Saturday, Coconut Creek police spokesman Tony Avello said. There were no other injuries.
Ballard's plane was registered with his company, Jerry Ballard Homes Inc., of Fayetteville, Ga., and the pilot had a second residence in Fort Lauderdale, Avello said. A company official did not immediately return a phone call Sunday.
The plane clipped the roof of the two-story home owned by Steve and Traci Sandford, who both work for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. It crashed into a yard shared by the Sandfords and Michele Kesian, and witnesses tried to extinguish the flames with garden hoses.
Traci Sandford was at home at the time, watching television with her young daughter. She said firefighters were able to salvage a computer with baby pictures of her daughter, plus a fireproof safe.
The Sandfords' home was heavily damaged and the family will stay with relatives.
Avello said investigators were removing the plane Sunday and the National Transportation Safety Board was investigating.
Thursday
July 17th, 2025
4:14AM
