CNN.com - Plane hits skyscraper in Milan - April 18, 2002

CNNenEspanol.com A small plane has hit a skyscraper in central Milan, setting the top floors of the 30-story building on fire, an Italian journalist told CNN. The crash by the Piper tourist plane into the 26th floor occurred at 5:50 p.m. (1450 GMT) on Thursday, said journalist Desideria Cavina. The building houses government offices and is next to the city's central train station. Several storeys of the building were engulfed in fire, she said. Italian TV says the crash put a hole in the 25th floor of the Pirelli building, and that smoke is pouring from the opening. Police and ambulances are at the scene. Many people were on the streets as they left work for the evening at the time of the crash. Police were trying to keep people away, and many ambulances were on the scene. There is no word yet on casualties. U.N. envoy horror at Jenin camp U.S. bombing kills Canadians Chinese missiles concern U.S. 2002 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. An AOL Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. under which this service is provided to you.

ABCNEWS.com : Plane Slams Into Milan Skyscraper

The Pirelli Building in Milan, Italy, was hit by a small plane. (ABCNEWS.com) 8212; A small plane crashed into a skyscraper in downtown Milan today, setting several floors of the 30-story building on fire. The plane crashed into the 25th floor of the Pirelli building in downtown Milan. The weather was clear at the time of the crash. Smoke poured from the opening as police and ambulances rushed to the area. The president of the Italian Senate, Marcello Pera, told Italian television it "very probably" appeared to be a terrorist attack but soon afterwards his spokesman said it was probably an accident. A transport official told Reuters the plane had reported problems with its undercarriage and was circling the city ahead of trying to land at a local airport. The Pirelli building houses the administrative offices of the local Lombardy region and sits next to the city's central train station. It is constructed of concrete and glass. The crash happened just before rush hour, as office workers were closing their day. ABCNEWS' Pierre Thomas contributed to this report. Copyright 2002 ABCNEWS Internet Ventures.

Small plane hits Milan building

CNNenEspanol.com A small plane has hit a skyscraper in central Milan, setting the top floors of the 30-story building on fire, an Italian journalist told CNN. The crash by the Piper tourist plane into the 26th floor occurred at 5:50 p.m. (1450 GMT) on Thursday, said journalist Desideria Cavina. The building houses government offices and is next to the city's central train station. Several storeys of the building were engulfed in fire, she said. Italian TV showed a hole in the side of the Pirelli building with smoke pouring from the ope ning. RAI state TV reported that the plane had apparently radioed an SOS because of engine trouble . Earlier though, in Rome, the senate's president, Marcello Pera, said it "very probably" appe ared to be a terrorist attack. Police and ambulances are at the scene. Many people were on the streets as they left work for the evening at the time of the crash. Police were trying to keep people away, and many ambulances were on the scene. There is no word yet on casualties. TV pictures from the scene evoked horrific memories of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the collapse of the building's twin towers. "I heard a strange bang so I went to the window and outside I saw the windows of the Pirelli building blown out and then I saw smoke coming from them," said Gianluca Liberto, an engineer who was working in the area told Reuters. The building is known as the Pirelli skyscraper but the Italian tyre and cable company does not operate out of the building. It is one of the symbols of Italy's financial capital and is one of the world's tallest conc rete buildings, designed between 1955 and 1960. U.N. envoy horror at Jenin camp U.S. bombing kills Canadians Chinese missiles concern U.S. 2002 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. An AOL Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. under which this service is provided to you.