PAULDING COUNTY, Oh (WOWO): A small plane crashed in rural Paulding County at about 3:30 Friday afternoon, severely injuring the pilot. The crash site is in Brown Township, near the Village of Charloe, approximately 9 miles southeast of Paulding.

Paulding County Sheriff Jason Landers tells WOWO News that the plane, which was a single-engine, fixed wing aircraft, had taken off from a private grass runway moments before it crashed a few hundred feet away.

The pilot has been identified as 35 year old Dustin Dobbelaere of Defiance, Ohio. He was the only occupant of the plane, according to Sheriff Landers, who said that he was transported by air-ambulance to a Fort Wayne Hospital. His condition is unknown.

The Federal Aviation Administration as well as the NTSB have joined the Paulding County Sheriff in determining the cause of the crash.