Plane dangles for hours on Georgia power lines

Two uninjured men were rescued from the dangling plane.

KENNESAW, Georgia (CNN) -- Firefighters rescued two men early Thursday from their single-engine aircraft after it crashed into power lines and dangled for hours 70 feet above the ground.

"They were extremely lucky," said Mark Gresham of the Cobb County Fire Department. "This is not something you see every day."

The men were en route from Cleveland, Ohio, to the Peachtree City, Georgia airport, southwest of Atlanta, when their Piper Warrior began to run out of fuel. The plane was diverted to McCollum airport in Kennesaw, northwest of Atlanta, but exhausted its fuel supply about three miles short of the runway.

The 1,800-pound aircraft glided along the power lines before coming to rest upside down against a metal power pole just before 10 p.m., according to Gresham. A power line became wrapped around the plane's tail as it skimmed the wires, keeping it from crashing to the ground.

The plane came to rest less than 100 yards from a home in a residential area.

Electricity was cut to the power lines while a large crane was brought in to help secure the plane with a sling. The Cobb County Fire Department rescue team removed the men using a ladder truck with a bucket on top, easing them from their precarious perch.

Rescue officials kept in touch with the men via radio and also used flashlights to communicate, using one flash for "yes," two flashes for "no" to answer questions. They were reported to have cuts, bumps and bruises, but no serious injuries and were taken to the hospital for treatment.

Working in temperatures hovering in the upper 20s, the rescue team hoisted chemical hot pads to the men to help keep them warm during the rescue. Asked how they were braving the cold, one of the men said it was "cold, but not unbearable."

Commenting on the men's brush with with death, Gresham said they should hurry up and buy some lottery tickets while their luck holds out.

-- CNN Assignment Editor Steve Brusk contributed to this story