Dale Earnhardt Jr, Family OK Following Plane Crash

NASCAR champion and current NBC broadcaster Dale Earnhardt Jr and his family were hospitalized and later discharged are all OK following a terrifying plane crash at the Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Carter County, Tennessee.

Dale Earnhardt Jr, his wife Amy, and their daughter Isla
(Google Images)

Earnhardt Jr's Cessna Citation jet, which was registered to his JR Motorsports Xfinity Series team, rolled off of the end of the runway and caught fire at 3:40 p.m. ET, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). While photos and videos posted to social media showed flames and giant plumes of black smoke, as the plane lay smoldering on it's side near the edge of the highway.

The five passengers on board the plane were Earnhardt Jr, his wife Amy, their 15-month-old daughter Isla Rose, and two pilots. The family's dog Gus was also on the flight. Dale Jr's sister and business manager, Kelley Earnhardt Miller, tweeted that "everyone is safe and has been taken to the hospital for further evaluation."

Photos and videos posted to social media showed everyone on the flight making their way off the plane to safety as first responders arrived on the scene, as well as some scary images of the wreckage. Armature video also showed one person, believed to be Earnhardt Jr, collapse as they made their way from the crash site. It was later disclosed that the family and their pilots were hospitalized with minor cuts and abrasions, per the Carter County Sheriff's Office.

Earnhardt Jr was flying in to join his colleagues on the NBC Sports broadcast crew for the race weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. That will not happen, however, as both parties agreed it was best for Earnhardt to take the weekend off to spend time with his family. He will be back in the broadcast booth at Darlington Raceway.

"We're incredibly grateful that Dale, his wife Amy, daughter Isla, and the two pilots are safe following today's accident," the network said in a statement to The Associated Press. "After being discharged from the hospital, we communicated with Dale and his team, and we're all in agreement that he should take this weekend off to be with his family."

Early this morning, Earnhardt Miller took to Twitter once more to thank those who offered their prayers and well-wishes in the aftermath of this terrifying accident:

Finally laying down for the night and want to say thank you to God, the angels among us, our pilots, first responders, medical staff, our NASCAR family and everyone that has reached out in whatever way to support us all. ❤️

— Kelley Earnhardt (@EarnhardtKelley) August 16, 2019

The FAA will investigate and two investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board will determine the probable cause of the accident.