All four people aboard two small planes that collided over central Florida on March 7 have perished.
A call to 911 reported a collision over a lake, and police arrived shortly after 2 p.m.
A search and rescue operation was launched by authorities in Winter Haven, Florida, after two planes collided in the sky over Lake Hartridge near Winter Haven Regional Airport, south of Orlando.
All the passengers were identified. Faith Irene Baker, 24, was a pilot and flight instructor for Sunrise Aviation; Zachary Jean Mace, 19, was a student at Polk State College; Louis C. Defazio, 78, was from Fredricksburg, Texas; and Randall Elbert Crawford, 67, was from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
Polk County law enforcement reports that two separate companies, Sunrise Aviation and Jack Brown’s Seaplane Base, were responsible for operating the aircrafts.
According to the police, one plane was floating on the surface and the other was submerged about 21 feet below the lake bed.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are looking into the crash.