AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A new stop has been added to the James Brown tour in Augusta.

It’s the first house his family lived in that James Brown bought for his father when they came back to Augusta. This, before moving to Walton Way and then over to Beech Island.

But this is a piece of history you can go inside; the family wanting to share a piece of their history with the world.

Walking inside is like you’re taking a step back in time.

“You’re not just standing in a home. This is history that happened in this home, and then a lot of the homes around here,” said Dr. Yamma Brown, James Brown’s daughter.

But the memories still feel fresh, almost everyone in James Brown’s family has memories here on Parkway Drive.

“From the late 60s all the way up until the 2000s at some point in time, somebody in our family was living in this home, and we were coming in and out of this home. So there are a ton of memories. Some we will say, some we will not,” said Dr. Deanna Brown Thomas, James Brown’s daughter.

And the history goes beyond the doors of the home.

“This is a home from the 60s, in an area that was not black, it was predominantly Caucasian. And so you have African American family that’s living here. And then not only my dad, but my grandfather, this being my grandfather’s home, coming from, you know, being like having nothing,” said Dr. Yamma Brown.

Some fans have been on the tour before and came back to be a part of the first tour allowed inside the space.

“I used to write letters to the editor for James Brown Boulevard being to be changed James Brown Boulevard. I used to send him birthday announcements in the newspaper. I used to send him Father’s Day gifts. All kinds of stuff. I was really into James brown, ”said Patrick Brissey, a James Brown fan.

Now it will hold even more memories outside of James Brown’s family.

“He would call me school boy…when he would see me. Now I listened to all the things that he did about education and so I got a PhD later on. I told him when I first met him, I was going to keep soul alive and he just busted out laughing. And so now I argue for the existence of a soul. And so it’s kind of cool to see keep the soul alive and that sort of thing,” he said.

For more information on taking the James Brown tour in Augusta, click here.

Copyright 2024 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The National Transportation Safety Board has already launched its investigation of an airplane crash that killed the pilot Thursday morning in an Augusta neighborhood.

The single-engine propeller-driven plane crashed at Hillcrest Avenue at Belmount Drive around 7:13 a.m. Thursday, moments after taking off from Daniel Field.

It was bound for New Haven, Conn., but only made it a couple of blocks and 625 feet in altitude before it came down in the densely populated neighborhood.

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Many are calling the pilot, Jason McKenzie, a hero for avoiding deaths and injuries on the ground, even though he died in the crash.

After arriving at the crash site around 2:45 p.m. Thursday, NTSB investigator Ralph Hicks took a few minutes to discuss the case.

Hicks said he’d be spending 24 to 36 hours in Augusta.

“We don’t rule anything out,” Hicks said. “We’re here just to just to gather facts, and then put everything together at the end of the investigation.”

Investigators will take pieces of the airplane to a hangar elsewhere in Georgia, where they’ll put it back together and try to determine what happened.

As of right now, investigators don’t know what caused the crash, but they’ll be looking at several factors, including the pilot, the aircraft and the operating environment.

As far as the pilot, Hicks said officials do know McKenzie is an experienced pilot with 800 hours of flight time as of last year.

A visual inspection didn’t reveal any evidence of catastrophic engine failure, Hicks said, and there was no indication of a distress call.

He said it’s not clear whether the pilot tried to return to the airfield before the crash, although observers noted that the direction of the crash might indicate he had.

The “black box” data recorder on the plane could be key if it captured anything important.

Investigators will be looking at flights the plane has made in the past 72 hours that may indicate whether anything has gone wrong.

We looked at the flight records, which show the plane had made several trips in the past few days, including:

• To Greensboro, N.C., on April 24 and back to Daniel Field on Saturday.
• To Southern Pines, N.C., and back on April 23.
• To Sevierville, Tenn., and back on April 20.
• To Thomson and back on April 18.

We know the Beechcraft Bonanza A36 was manufactured in 1999 and owned by WBME, a limited-liability corporation based in Warrenville, according to government records.

The plane had four cabin windows on each side, starboard rear double doors and seats for six. Two of those seats were in the cockpit and four were in the cabin – configured as two rows of two seats each, with the rows facing each other, according to photos of the plane posted online. It had a small cargo area in the rear.

Its certificate was valid until 2030.

Equipped with a three-blade propeller and a 300-horsepower engine, the model was introduced in 1968 and is still being made by the Beechcraft division of Textron – a company that has a plant in Augusta.

WBME was created in October 2023 and the plane was registered to it the next month. The previous owner was in California, so this was a new plane for the owner, though it was made 25 years ago.

The plane’s first flight under WBME ownership was in February of this year.

As far as the investigation, the NTSB’s work could take a while.

Hicks said the agency would release a preliminary statement of facts about the crash in about a week. But a final report on the cause could take a year or two.

The public can help. Hicks said there were indications that video doorbells in the neighborhood had recorded the crash. And some people may have seen it.

Witnesses or those who have surveillance video or other information are asked to contact the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov.

Beyond witness statements and video, the NTSB said Hicks and other investigators will scrutinize:

• Recordings of any air traffic control communications.
• Aircraft maintenance records.
• Weather forecasts and actual weather and lighting conditions around the time of the accident.
• A 72-hour background of the pilot.
• Electronic devices.

Copyright 2024 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

A beloved father has been killed after his plane hit a tree and burst into flames feet away from homes in a wealthy Georgia neighborhood.

Jason McKenzie, 45, was the sole person aboard the aircraft when it crashed landed on Thursday morning.

The associate director of philanthropy at Augusta University took off from Daniel Field Airport bound for New Haven, Connecticut, and was returning to the airfield when his plane crashed in a fiery wreck.

First responders said his piloting skills ensured no further deaths or injuries. He is survived by his wife Stephanie and their young son.

‘I think that was a miracle,’ neighbor Lisa Lewis told WRDW. ‘I think the Lord protected everyone else.’ 

 He had taken off from Daniel Field Airport bound for New Haven, Connecticut, and was returning to the airfield when his plane crashed. Pictured: McKenzie on a previous flight

The fiery wreck crash landed in a leafy neighborhood in Augusta, Georgia, around 7.13am

McKenzie’s single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza A36 crashed at Hillcrest Avenue near Belmont Drive around 7:13 a.m. 

Flights records indicated that he only reached 625 feet in altitude before crashing half a mile from the airport. The plane skimmed a tree ripping off the left wing tip before crash landing between two homes on the leafy street, where homes routinely sell for over $1 million.

Loved ones and colleagues paid tribute to the tragic pilot, who was described as a committed Christian and diligent worker. 

‘​Jason was a devoted husband, father, and son. He loved his community, his work, and his church,’ McKenzie’s close fried Will Dyer told WRDW.

‘But most of all, I know that Jason loved Jesus. He was a faithful and committed follower of Christ. His faith was the guiding principle in his life and I trust that his faith is what led him into eternity.’

‘His passion for the university and our athletics programs was unsurpassed. We are keeping Jason’s family, friends and colleagues in our thoughts and prayers,’ AU said in a statement. 

Augusta Fire Chief Antonio Burden said first responders were able to contain the fire to the wreckage as he praised McKenzie for managing to avoid hitting any other buildings.

The single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza A36 crashed at Hillcrest Avenue near Belmont Drive

The plane skimmed a tree ripping off the left wing tip (pictured) before nosediving and bursting into flames

Flights records indicated that he only reached 625 feet in altitude before crashing half a mile from the airport. Pictured: McKenzie on a previous flight

McKenzie crashed outside this $1 million home but miraculously avoided causing any additional casualties through his piloting skills. The home was at one time an off-white color

Neighbors ran outside after hearing the plane go down and found the flaming wreckage smashed onto the leafy street. Pictured: Another $1million home near the crash site

‘We are very lucky and can only credit the pilot for that situation – for not involving another structure,’ he said.

Neighbors described the terrifying moments before the aircraft plunged to the ground. 

‘We hear planes all the time because we live close to Daniel Field, but this time it way louder than normal, and it got louder and louder and it just sounded like it was right outside the window,’ Lewis added.

‘A few seconds later, you kind of heard some sort of rustling kind of crash and then a loud banging pop sound.

‘The Lord is in control of all things. It could have been so much worse.’

McKenzie is survived by his wife Stephanie and their son 

The doting father was described as a committed family man and keen golfer in heartfelt tributes from friends

The keen golfer was credited as a hero by first responders for his quick thinking which avoided further injuries

Moments after the crash power was cut off to the affluent street which sent panicked neighbors poured outside. 

They described seeing the flames at least two stories high.

While the neighborhood is heavily populated, homes in the area are spread out, which officials say helped minimize the impact.

The crash is now being probed by the National Transportation Safety Board.