Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and DJ AM were critically injured in a plane crash Friday night (September 19) in Columbia, South Carolina. They had just performed at a free T-Mobile-sponsored show in the Five Points area, along with Perry Farrell and headliner Gavin DeGraw.
Though early reports had suggested that DeGraw may have been on the plane at the time of the crash, DeGraw's father, Wayne, told MTV News that he'd spoken to his son Saturday morning and that he was fine. Farrell's manager, Peter Katsis, confirmed that Farrell was not on the plane.
According to Lynne Douglas, public information officer for the Columbia Metro Airport, the crash took place just before midnight on Friday and involved a private Learjet with six passengers onboard. While taking off, the plane, which never left the ground, began sending up sparks and skidded off the end of the runway through a fence separating the airfield from a nearby roadway. It then crossed the roadway and ended up in an embankment, catching fire on impact. Douglas said two passengers — who were later confirmed to be AM and Barker — escaped the aircraft while it was on the ground, while the other two passengers and crew members died in the crash.
An eye witness told NBC news affiliate WIS that he saw a fireball crossing the road near the airport and then realized it was a plane. He saw jet fuel shoot out across the roadway and then saw two men, who were both on fire, patting each other down to extinguish the flames.
Beth Frits, a spokesperson for the Joseph M. Still Burn Center in Augusta, Georgia, confirmed that AM (born Adam Goldstein) and Barker were transported to a hospital in Columbia, following the crash. They were transferred — AM by helicopter and Barker by ambulance — to the Still Center soon after. She told CNN that both men had "extensive burns."
Lexington County Deputy Coroner Brian Setree confirmed for MTV News on Saturday morning that three men and a woman were killed in the crash. Just after 10 a.m. Saturday, Setree identified two of the crash victims: the plane's pilot, Sarah Lemmon, 31, of Anaheim, California, and her co-pilot, James Bland, who was 52 and lived in Carlsbad, California. At 10:40, Setree confirmed that Barker's assistant, Chris "Little Chris" Baker, also died in the crash. He was 29, and lived in Studio City, California. At 11:30 a.m., Setree released the name of the fourth person who died: Barker's security guard, Charles Still, 25, of Los Angeles.
The National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a press conference for 11:30 a.m., and it is expected more details about the accident will be revealed at that time.
Barker, 32, and DJ AM, 35, were the house band for the 2008 VMAs.
Courtesy of MTV.com
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