Alaska plane crash: Bodies of all 10 victims have been recovered as recovery crew fights the winter storm

The authorities in Alaska have confirmed that the remains of all 10 people killed in the small plane crash have been recovered. The plane crashed into the ice on the Bering Sea earlier this week. The confirmation came from the Nome Volunteer Fire Department on Saturday afternoon.

For days recovery crews have been racing to recover the bodies of the victims before a winter storm hit the region, making search operation more difficult. “All 10 individuals aboard the Bering Aeroplane have been officially brought home,” the fire department wrote in a post on Facebook at about 3 pm (local time). The authorities noted that the crews are still working in the region to recover the remains of the aircraft.

The Bering Air single-engine turboprop plane was travelling from Unalakleet to the hub community of Nome when it went off the radar on Thursday afternoon. It was found the next day following an extensive search operation. The authorities later confirmed that all nine passengers and one pilot who were onboard died in the plane crash.

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Crew members struggle with ‘slushy and unstable’ sea ice

While the community started to mourn the tragic incident, crew members had to conduct their search operation by navigating through the unstable and slushy thin ice that had accumulated over the sea. They now have one day to recover the plane’s wreckage since a massive winter storm is expected to engulf the area soon.

Officials noted that Black Hawk helicopters are being used to move aircraft once all the bodies were removed from the region. Among those killed in the deadly crash were Rhone Baumgartner and Kameron Hartvigson. They were in Unalakleet to service a heat recovery system vital to the community’s water plant.

“These two members of our team lost their lives serving others,” David Beveridge, vice president of environmental health and engineering for Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, said in a statement. “The loss of these two incredible individuals and everyone else on board the plane will be felt all over Alaska," he added. The names of other victims have not been released as of now.

While giving an update on the situation, Nome’s mayor, John Handeland, choked up, expressing grief over the incident. “Nome is a strong community, and in challenging times we come together and support each other. I expect the outpouring of support to continue in the coming days as we all work to recover from this tragic incident,” Handeland said.

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With inputs from The Associated Press.