From Deseret News archives:
8 feared dead in crash of aircraft northwest of Moab
Grand County Sheriff James Nyland said his office received a call just before 6 p.m. reporting a fire in an area about two miles west and one mile south of the airport. Two deputies were dispatched in a Utah Highway Patrol helicopter to investigate the fire report, which he said seemed unusual because the area has very little vegetation or any kind of fire fuel. When they arrived, they found the wreckage of an aircraft.
"Officers said the plane was completely engulfed in flames when they got to the scene," Nyland told the Deseret News late Friday. "We haven't been able to get close to it until just now."
Nyland said they are basing their estimate of fatalities, five to eight people, on what they can see and that the plane was still smoldering four hours after the accident. He said it would be "several hours" before any bodies could be recovered.
In addition to sheriff's deputies, the Moab Fire Department was on the scene as well as members of the Grand County Search and Rescue team.
"It's a very compact debris field," the trooper said. "You can see where the plane slid along the ground after impact."
Nyland said investigators had not been able to confirm whether the plane had made a stop at the airport but concurred with Mercer's assessment that it appeared the plane had just taken off, possibly after a refueling stop. Nyland said they still had no information regarding the origin of the plane or those on board.
The plane has been tentatively identified as a Beechcraft King Air, which has several models that seat eight people, but Nyland said that he was still waiting to confirm that Friday.
Deputies were on the scene throughout the night securing the area and expected National Transportation Safety Board investigators to be in Moab early today to begin their investigation.
Friday's crash is the third fatal plane accident in Utah in the past two weeks. Three Blanding men were killed Aug. 8 when their single-engine plane went down near the Monticello Airport. The next day, a Washington couple died in a single-engine plane that went down on a Bear Lake beach, near Garden City. Both crashes occurred during daylight hours in good weather, and final NTSB reports on possible causes in these incidents have not been completed.
On Aug. 10, two planes collided about 50 miles north of the Wyoming-Utah border in Rock Springs, leaving three people dead.
E-mail: araymond@desnews.com
Recent comments
Our thoughts and prayers are with all families touched by this...
Dan B | Aug. 23, 2008 at 12:24 p.m.
I had a friend die in this crash. :(
SUU Student | Aug. 23, 2008 at 11:38 a.m.
boy, this year has not been a good year for aircrafts in Utah. My...
Cyclops | Aug. 23, 2008 at 8:47 a.m.
- Photo: Crafting nutcrackers 7:20 p.m.
- S.L. budget discussions continue 6:49 p.m.
- Man pleads guilty in assault 6:49 p.m.
- $25K reward offered in slaying 6:21 p.m.
- Step-father arrested in spanking 6:16 p.m.
- S.L. Dems appoint exec. director 6:15 p.m.
- Animal-rights protest issues resolved 6:12 p.m.
- Ex-legislators call for ethics reform 6:06 p.m.
- S.L. will light up for the holidays 6:00 p.m.
- Getting serious about seat belts 5:55 p.m.
- Utah, BYU are top choices for bowls
- BYU would like friendlier rivalry
- Protests against Phoenix LDS temple
- Best prep football games of 2009
- KSL: Prostitution in Utah County
- Man trapped in own body for 23 yrs
- Kirilenko climbing blocks list
- Woman describes stabbing, killing
- Boys basketball rankings
- 'Dancing' will fill out finale
- BYU would like friendlier rivalry
225 - Glenn Beck to enter politics?
222 - RSL wins MLS Cup on penalty kicks
202 - Palin plans tour stop in Utah
179 - Protests against Phoenix LDS temple
178 - Bronco, Kyle rubber match
137 - Palin's book shows she's unqualified
136 - BYU records with win
133 - Letters: Rushing to judge Palin
116 - Officer cleared in Cardall Taser case
104
The initial concept of the Skins game had a certain appeal. However, to be a...
Suspicious. Well, everything maybe as you say, but just like the medical...
As a Republican who strongly supports the ethics initiative, Utah GOP...
Maybe we could all meet for punch and cookies before the game?
For everyone talking about provo and olympus. Last year means nothing,...
Maybe so, but we can still beat BYU, who is beyond dwindled.
Ben, She didn't write the book, someone wrote it for her. Obama is...
The previews and commercials bore me for this film. I will probably wait...
@7:06 pm, You wrote, "forcing their views on others.." That's what...
I am currently a graduate student at the U, did my undergrad at USU and grew...



