Police say a small plane crash in upstate New York killed a family of five from Georgia who were leaving a baseball event in Cooperstown.
According to the New York State Police, the accident happened Sunday afternoon near Lake Cecil Road in the town of Masonville. Harrison VanEpps, 10, James VanEpps, 12, Ryan VanEpps, 42, Laura VanEpps, 43, and Roger Beggs, 76 were all killed.
“All of the passengers are family members from the state of Georgia and were in Cooperstown, NY for a baseball tournament,” the police said.
“The plane departed from Alfred S. Nader Regional Airport in Oneonta, NY, and was traveling to West Virginia to refuel with its ultimate destination as Cobb County International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia,” police said.
It is in Cooperstown that you can find the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
In a statement released Monday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp called the event “tragic” and asked everyone to “pray for the loved ones of the Beggs and VanEpps families,” along with his family.
The governor is also said to have said, “We offer our deepest condolences to all who knew and loved them.”
Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are both looking into the crash. The FAA told Fox News Digital that the plane that went down was a Piper PA-46 with a single engine.
The FAA also said that everyone on the plane died.
The NTSB told Fox News Digital that they are looking for reports from witnesses because they “will be very helpful to the investigation.”
“A multi-agency effort search of the area, with the utilization of drones, ATV and helicopters led to the discovery of debris and ultimately to the downed aircraft,” the state police said.
New York State Police said its “Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Collision Reconstruction Unit, and Forensic Identification Unit are working in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Board to determine the cause of the crash.”
