Police investigating plane crash near Chehalis-Centralia Airport, one injured

Chehalis police responded to a plane crash near the Chehalis River Bridge on State Route 6 near the Chehalis-Centralia Airport on Thursday afternoon.

According to a news release from the police department, deputies were dispatched to the crash at 12:14 p.m. Sept. 11. Upon arrival, officers discovered that an experimental aircraft had gone down in a field near the Chehalis River and State Route 6.

The pilot was a 55-year-old man, according to the release. He was rescued and treated by members of the Chehalis Fire Department before being transported for further medical care. Drugs or alcohol did not appear to be a factor in the crash, police say.

Deputy Chief Matt McKnight said he had no further updates on the man’s condition. There was nobody else in the aircraft.

McKnight said the Federal Aviation Administration was checking out the scene Friday. The crash remains under investigation.

The crash closed State Route 6 for two hours, and police were assisted by the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Patrol and the Department of Corrections.

Ty Vinson

The Olympian

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Ty Vinson covers the City of Olympia and keeps tabs on Tumwater and other communities in Thurston County. He joined The Olympian in 2021. Before that, he earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism at Indiana University. In college, he worked as an intern at the Northwest Indiana Times, the Oregonian and the Arizona Republic as a Pulliam Fellow. Support my work with a digital subscription