Plane Crash Victim In Critical Condition
/By Jano Tantongco
jtantongco@longislandergroup.com
Richard Rosenthal, the Huntington Station pilot and owner of the airplane that crashed in Westhampton Beach, is in critical condition but is expected to survive.
A Huntington Station man, the sole survivor of a deadly plane crash in the Hamptons last week, is in critical condition, but is expected to make a full recovery, according to his doctor.
Dr. James Vosswinkel, chief trauma surgeon for Stony Brook University Hospital, said 61-year-old Richard Rosenthal is alert and conscious, adding that his family allowed certain details of his condition to be publicized.
“The family is very grateful for the response that occurred at Gabreski Airport,” Vosswinkel said. “He’s still in critical condition. We do him expect him, however, to have a full recovery. We’re hopeful.”
Rosenthal suffered significant chest trauma, Vosswinkel said, and suffered from smoke inhalation from the fire ensuing the crash, which occurred at around 11:40 a.m. on Sunday. Rosenthal was airlifted to the hospital after the crash by a Suffolk County Police medical helicopter.
Rosenthal was the owner and pilot of the plane. He is a Queens-based attorney who specializes in animal law. Rosental is known as “The Dog Lawyer” and co-founded The Lexus Project, an organization dedicated to protecting canine rights, according to his website.
Rosenthal was one of three aboard his plane, a Navion F aircraft, when it crashed into trees while practicing takeoffs and landings at Francis S. Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach, according to a Federal Aviation Administration statement.
Passengers Arieh Narkunski, 64, of Brooklyn, and Robert A. Wilkie, 65, of Hempstead, were pronounced dead at the scene, according to published reports.
Fire Department of the City of New York stated two of its off-duty members, Joseph McCarthy and Yaanique Scott, along with five other members of the U.S. Army National Guard were onboard a helicopter headed for a training mission when they responded to the crash scene, according to the FDNY Facebook page.
The firefighters arrived on scene to remove the canopy cover of the airplane and rescue Rosenthal from the wreckage.
Keith Holloway, spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, said the federal agency is investigating the crash.
“We are not at a point where we’re determining the cause... it’s more so fact gathering,” he said, adding that the plane was removed from the wreckage site on Tuesday for further examination.
He added that the NTSB is reviewing the wreckage itself, maintenance records, the medical history of the pilot, radar data and traffic control communications in their investigation.
