Hasbrouck Heights -- Investigators and residents in the Washington Street area are searching for answers regarding a private aircraft crashing into one of its backyards on Dec. 9.

A Beech Baron TC58 from the Richmond, Va. area fell about two and a half miles short of its Teterboro Airport destination at about 5:25 p.m. It plunged into the back yard of 21 Washington St. and exploded about five minutes later. The crash killed all four occupants and shattered the late afternoon routines of dozens of neighbors.

One neighbor, John Ruckdeschel, said he was rounding the corner from Woodside Avenue onto Washington Street.

"I was about to enter my driveway when I heard this crashing sound," Ruckdeschel said. "When I turned around, I saw this orange flame rising from the back of the house across the street."

The Carata family were about to have dinner on the Lodi part of Woodside. They too heard a thump and a flash.

"Our front room window allows us to see into the backyards of houses across the street," Leonard Carata said. "I can see an orange flame several backyards away. The fire was so hot that it turned a metal swing set white hot."

The aircraft had left from an airport in Hanover County, Va. for a 500-mile trip to New York City. Aboard the six-passenger plane were two men and two women.

The plane was cleared to land on Teterboro’s Runway 19 when it lost control and hit a row of 80-foot tall oak trees. It then clipped a rear porch and slammed nose first into the backyard by the base of a tree. Debris scattered into five adjacent back yards, shattering windows and destroying a metal shed.

Frank Armeli was also preparing for dinner in his Central Avenue house. He went outside, looking for a car crash, a blown transformer or a gas main leak. When Armeli, an off duty Hackensack firefighter looked into 21 Washington St.’s backyard, he saw 40-foot tall flames -- and a man sitting next to the wreckage.

"I was running up the driveway when I heard the man screaming ‘Help me,’" Armeli said. "I ran up to put him out but I had nothing to wrap around him or my hands."

The first of Hasbrouck Heights and Lodi’s fire trucks arrived on the scene within two minutes. Hasbrouck Heights Fire Chief Vincent Monahan said they called for mutual aid when they realized they had a plane crash on their hands.

"We and Lodi went out at about the same time because it was so close to the border," said Monahan. "The borough emergency management coordinator Roger Szanto got there and declared a state of emergency in the town.

Ruckdeschel watched as Armeli got assistance from resident Marge Jengo, Albert Kopec and Lodi fireman Keith Bruining in rescuing the burned man. They were about to carry him away when leftover aviation fuel ignited into a second fireball.

"When it exploded again, everyone ran back for a moment," Ruckdeschel said. "It took them a moment to go back and put out the fire."

Dozens of fire, police, ambulance and related vehicles descended on the residential street. Vehicles came from Teaneck, Teterboro Airport, Wood-Ridge, Bergen County Police and Sheriff’s offices and other locales. Szanto was joined by emergency coordinators from the county and State Police.

Monahan marveled in the teamwork after the disaster.

"When one has a large group of public safety people from a wide area on mutual aid, there would usually be a little friction among them," Monahan said. "Not this time, everybody pitched in and knew what they had to do."

Part of the public safety workers’ jobs is crowd control. Within 30 minutes of the accident’s first reports, people and media representatives flocked to the usually quiet streets. A nine block area was closed to vehicular traffic. Yellow police tape, used to rope off the crash site from the estimated 1,000 spectators, was as common on front lawns as holiday decorations.

Leonard Carata and his family stood on their front lawn as well.

"I can’t remember when we had this big a crowd," said Carata. "The last time we had so many police and fire out was with Hurrican Floyd last September."

Nearby resident Bill Cavalier recalled another small aircraft accident in the borough. A private plane crashed into his garage on June 28, 1966, which left the pilot with a fractured skull.

The Beech Baron quartet were not as fortunate. Three were killed on impact. The burned man, who was rushed by Lodi ambulance to the Hackensack University Medical center within 10 minutes, died before 11 p.m.

Armeil and Kopec were also treated for burns on their hands and arms. They were released later that night.

National Transportation Safety Board investigator Bob Hancock arrived shortly after the burned man was evacuated. The incident’s emphasis changed from rescue to recovery when Hancock and his five-man team were given command of the site.

Hancock gave two press conferences. The first was at the scene that night, recounting the basic facts of the crash. The second one, held in a former parts warehouse in Moonachie the next day, provided an early indication of what might have happpened.

"From what we have from radar readings and recordings of tower conversations, I can give you a quick and dirty summary," Hancock said. "The tower gave instructions to the pilot to make a left hand turn from the west. The pilot then made a right hand turn before dropping from the radar screen."

Hancock said it usually takes six months to conduct an ivestigation and file a report. The plane, unlike commercial and corporate aircraft, does not carry flight voice or data recorders.

Behind Hancock in the Dec. 10 conference were the plane’s remains. What was once a twin engine aircraft capable of cruising at 20,000 foot altitude at 232 mph for 1,300 miles is reduced to 26 pieces of twisted metal. Aside from the engines, a propeller and a window frame, few of its parts were recognizable.

William Torre and Fred Dressel, respective mayors of Hasbrouck Heights and Moonachie, also attended Hancock’s conference. They mulled over what can be done to prevent similar mishaps.

"I must thank all of our own fire, police and ambulance members and those from other areas for their excellent job with the accident," Torre said. "Up to now, our concern had been on aircraft noise and pollution in meetings with the airport."

"The main problem is that the reality of Teterboro Airport’s volume has far exceeded its location," Dressel said. "We’ve had crashes in each of the towns surrounding the airport in recent years. It’s become Russian roulette and we need to either limit flight volume or move the private aircraft to another airport away from residential areas."

Congressman Steve Rothman toured the crash site that morning and promptly sent letters to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Federal Aviation Administration. Rothman, D-Fair Lawn urged the two agencies to take immediate steps in restricting Teterboro’s operations.

Other politicians arriving to view the accident were Governor Christie Whitman, U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg and State Assemblywoman Rose Heck.

Back at the Hasbrouck Heights Fire Department, Monahan reflected on the efforts of colleagues Armeli and Bruining.

"We know Frank and Keith and have worked with them. They and those who helped them put their lives on the line to save the then survivor. By pulling him away from the fire, they gave that man a chance to survive."

Ruckdeschel, meanwhile offered a suggestion about how the ill-fated pilot may have been disoriented.

"The crash took place in the dark and during the late afternoon," Ruckdeschel said.

"You have a lot of lights from traffic and you have all the holiday decorations up. Maybe the pilot got lost with all these lights on."