Dion Dawkins’ fiance, Daiyaana Muhammad, was checking her mail when a single-engine aircraft crashed near a property owned by Dion.
One man lost his life after the small plane he was flying fell from the sky as he was attempting to make a desperate detour to the Buffalo airport.
Highlights
- One person died after the small plane crashed near the property owned by Bills lineman Dion Dawkins.
- Dawkins’ fiance, Daiyaana Muhammad, took her Instagram story and posted a photo of a flaming wreckage.
- Daiyaana is a registered nurse who shares two daughters and one son with Dawkins.
According to police officers, the place burst into flames after crashing between two homes at around 11:30 a.m. The closest house was 100-200 feet away.
The plane crashed close to the house of Buffalo Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins. The state’s Department of Environmental Conservation was also on hand to assist with fuel and oil cleanup.
While Dawkins and his family were safe, the crash did kill the pilot, whose identity has not been revealed yet.
News 4 reported that the pilot took off from Lansing, Michigan, and was headed to White Plains, New York.
Britteny Leijewski, who lives near the crash site, said,
“(I was) in my kitchen looking down the street and I see a big cloud of black smoke,” “I decided to drive down there to check it out and I saw a neighbor run over to the one house because it was near his property.”
Britteny Leijewski
East Aurora police chief Patrik Welch said the debris field left behind was about 100 by 100 feet. Fire officials said they controlled the fire within 20 minutes of arriving.
William Major, chief of the Buffalo Niagara International Airport Fire Department, said,
“Based on its location, it brought a little bit of a challenge to them. They were able to use the agents that they had and because of the size of the aircraft, there was a limited amount of fuel on the aircraft vs. a commercial aircraft,”
William Major
Due to the crash, Dawkins was excused from Bills practice on Thursday, December 19, 2024. Matt Bove of WKBW said,
“We just finished watching Bills practice,””Dion Dawkins was excused from today’s practice for a personal reason.”
Matt Bove
Dion Dawkins’ Fiance Daiyaana Muhammad, Posted The Photo Of Crash Site On Her Instagram
The place, a 1979 Beechcraft A36, which took off from Lansing, Michigan, to White Plains, New York, crashed nearly the property of Dion and Daiyaana.
Dawkins said that the residence is not where he lives but a property he owns in East Aurora, a suburb of Buffalo.
At the time of the crash, Daiyaana Muhammad was there checking mail.
Dawkins was in the hot tub at the team facility preparing for practice when he received a phone call from security and then from Muhammad.
Dion’s fiance, Daiyaana, captured and posted the flaming wreckage to her Instagram story. However, the story has disappeared from her story as it is only visible for 24 hours.
Dawkins, who was visibly emotional, said,
“I still wonder why things happen in life, but tragedies happen all of the time,” “The biggest point about it is I just hope that the guy, the pilot’s family is OK. I hope that they’re doing all right, because somebody lost their life today for an accident, a mechanical thing, something. And I’m glad that my family is perfectly fine. The alarm systems, the security guards that are there and all other people that are involved that help keep us safe. Everything was going off, so having the right people in line, and for the family of that pilot, my prayers are out.”
Dion Dawkins
Daiyaana was engaged to Dion Dawkins after dating for several years. They have two daughters, Dalilah and Dakota, and a son, Dil Dawkins.
Scrolling through their social media, it’s clear that Dawkins is as loyal to Daiyaan as he is to his team. In March 2023, Muhammad shared a snapshot from one of their lunch dates with the caption,
“Eating is my favorite pastime.”
Daiyaana Muhammad
Dawkins lives his NFL dream but is even more grateful for the little world he and Daiyaana have built.
According to The Hollywood Magazine, Daiyaana Muhammad is a registered nurse born in Los Angeles, California, and moved to Atlanta, Georgia, after graduating from high school.
She attended Brookline College, where she graduated with a degree in Nursing in 2015.
Later, Muhammad pursued a Master of Science in Leadership and Healthcare Management from Western Governors University, graduating in 2020.
She holds the Harvard Bok Higher Education Teaching Certificate and was a professor at Chamberlain University from 2021 to 2022.
Now, she is working toward earning a certificate to become a Pilates instructor.
In addition, Muhammad is also an emerging fashion model who was featured on the cover of L’Eclair magazine in July 2024.
She was set to host and model at an exclusive event in Italy in October 2024.
Additional Information
- Dion Dawkins has an estimated net worth of around $10 million, primarily earned from his NFL career.
- Dawkins was born to his father, Eric Dawkins, and his mother, Lisa Dawkins.
- He was named a First-team All-American Athletic Conference selection after his senior year.
