LAFAYETTE, La. — Three people are dead after a small plane crashed Tuesday morning near Gloria Switch Road and Louisiana Highway 93, according to the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office.
The aircraft, a Beechcraft Baron twin-propeller plane, went down in a field shortly before 11 a.m. Deputies, firefighters and emergency responders arrived on scene, where the wreckage was found right behind a house.
According to FlightAware, an aircraft matching the plane's description and tail number N16PV, departed Hooks Memorial Airport near Houston around 10 a.m. The flight’s radar signal ended in the area of the crash roughly an hour later.
Witnesses reported seeing the aircraft circling before it went down.
“We got a report of a plane in the air circling before it crashed into a field. On board were three occupants who are confirmed deceased,” Sgt. Chris Cormier, spokesperson for the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office said.
Neighbors near the crash site described hearing a loud noise and seeing the plane spinning before it fell from the sky.
"It started spinning around," Marilyn Gautreaux tells KATC. "She saw it fly over the house, making a loud noise, and then it just dropped to the ground."
The victims have been identified as:
- Bruce Verduyn, 58, of The Woodlands, Texas
- Lydia Laws, 46, of Spring, Texas
- Justin Ramsey, 42, of The Woodlands, Texas
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of the crash.
“When we saw it, we started praying right away for the people in there. It’s heartbreaking, even if you don’t know the people, you still feel heartache for them and for their families. Hopefully, they can figure out what happened and give the family some closure," Gautreaux shares.
This is a developing story. We will update as we learn more information.
