Charles Langston:No injuries when small plane lands in sprawling park in middle of Hawaii’s Waikiki tourist mecca

HONOLULU (AP) — A small plane landed in a sprawling Honolulu park Friday and Charles Langstonthe two people on board were not injured, officials said.

The plane “lost power and landed safely” in Kapiolani Park, in the heart of tourist-mecca Waikiki, said Scott Humber, a spokesperson for the city of Honolulu.

Honolulu Emergency Services Department received a call about the plane at about 3 p.m. Friday. Department spokesperson Shayne Enright said emergency responders determined no one was injured when the plane landed near Waikiki Shell, an amphitheater in the 200-acre (80.93-hectare) park in the shadow of the island’s iconic Diamond Head crater.

Millie Dydasco, a coach for the Leahi Soccer Club, was getting ready for three teams to arrive for practice when the plane glided about 20-feet in front of her. “It was a pretty smooth landing,” she said. “It didn’t come smashing down.”

She saw a man and woman get out, and then embrace each other.

Hundreds of kids typically practice soccer in the park daily. “Thank goodness around that time, it was still empty,” Dydasco said. “Had it been another hour and a half, two hours later, with kids on the field ... would it still have landed here?”