'08

Musician Travis Barker and celebrity DJ Adam Goldstein, better known as DJ AM, were among the surviving passengers in a private learjet which crashed taking off from a South Carolina airport Friday night. Both Barker and Goldstein are in critical condition in the burn unit of an area hospital. Four other passengers were killed, but their names have not yet been released. Barker and Goldstein were performing along with Perry Farrell, best known as the former lead singer of the band Janes Addiction, and Gavin DeGraw. It is not yet known whether Farrell and DeGraw were on the plane. (Update: according to various accounts, both Farrell and DeGraw are fine and were not on the plane.)
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and a popular disc jockey were critically injured in a Learjet crash in South Carolina that killed four people, authorities said Saturday.
Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the plane carrying six people was departing shortly before midnight Friday when air traffic controllers reporting seeing sparks. The plane went off a runway and crashed on a nearby road, she said.
Hospital spokeswoman Beth Frits said Barker and DJ AM, whose real name is Adam Goldstein, were in critical condition at a burn center in Augusta, Ga., about 75 miles southwest of Columbia.
NBC News reported that Barker, who also starred in MTV reality show “Meet the Barkers”, had performed Friday night at an event alongside Perry Farrell, the former Jane’s Addiction singer, as well as Gavin DeGraw and Goldstein.
‘Terrible and tragic’
It was not clear whether Farrell and DeGraw were also traveling with Barker and Goldstein.Federal officials confirmed that two crew members and two passengers were killed in the crash.
“It’s absolutely terrible and tragic,” Columbia Mayor Bob Coble said.
Bergen said the Lear 60 was headed to Van Nuys, California. She was unable to confirm the names of those on board.
Barker and Goldstein perform together under the name TRVSDJ-AM.
[From MSNBC]
This is awful news and our hearts go out to their families and to those who lost their lives. Part of me hopes that Farrell and DeGraw were not on the plane, but it’s a tragedy no matter who died in that accident.
We’ll have to stay tuned to this story and see if more information is available.
Update:
Here is a photo of the crash and more information from the local news source, WLTX. The plane crashed into an embankment when taking off, and then caught fire. Baholicious notes Perez Hilton says Perry Farrell and Gavin DeGraw were not on the plane, but that has not yet been confirmed. There were two passengers and two crew members who perished in the crash:
An airport spokesperson says a lear jet–a small, private passenger plane–crashed just after take off a little before midnight Friday.
At this time, it appears the plane was attempting to take off, ran off the runway, through a fence, and hit an embankment along Highway 302. The plane then caught fire, and airport emergency crews are working to put out the blaze.
Six people were aboard the airplane. It’s believed four people are dead, and two were taken to the hospital.
CBS News has confirmed that Travis Barker, a drummer who once was a member of the rock bank “Blink 182″, and D.J. AM, who’s real name is Adam Goldstein, were aboard that plane, and survived. They have been taken to the hospital for treatment at the Augusta Burn Center, and they both are in critical condition.
Barker and Goldstein were in Columbia Friday night as part of a concert in Columbia’s Five Points.
Update 2: TMZ is reporting that Perry Farrell was not on the plane. Hopefully Perez Hilton was right and Gavin DeGraw wasn’t on the plane, either.
Update 3: Gavin DeGraw wasn’t on the plane, according to his rep, quoted in People.
The other two passengers who died are said to be males, while the two crewmembers were a female pilot and a male co-pilot.
Update 4: TMZ reports that the pilot and co-pilot have died, Sarah Lemmon and James Bland, along with another male passenger, Charles Still, and Travis Barker’s assistant, Chris Baker, 29, (no relation) who was featured on his reality show Meet the Barkers. Baker had a wife and baby at home.
Barker and Goldstein escaped by opening the door of the plane and jumping out right after it crashed and was already on fire. Barker is said to be burned from the waist down and it is thought that he will survive. Goldstein has suffered serious burns to his face.
Travis Barker and DJ Am are shown at the MTV Movie Awards on 9/7/08







































