Crime & Safety
9 Dead In South Dakota Plane Crash
The plane crashed in rural South Dakota shortly after taking off on Saturday afternoon, officials said.
CHAMBERLAIN, S.D. — A plane crash in South Dakota on Saturday afternoon left nine people dead, including two children, according to officials and news reports.
Peter Knuds, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, said that 12 people were on board the plane when it crashed around 12:30 p.m. Knuds said the plane crashed shortly after taking off from Chamberlain.
Knuds said nine people were killed. The three additional passengers on board were injured.
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According to The Argus Leader, the victims of the plane crash were all from eastern Idaho. Knuds said the plane was bound for Idaho Falls.
Brule County State's Attorney Theresa Maule Rossow told the Argus Leader two children were among the dead. The paper reported that the ages of the passengers ranged from 7 to 81.
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The NTSB is sending three investigators to the scene but it is unclear when they will arrive due to inclement weather.
At the time of the crash, a winter storm warning was in place, according to the Leader.
Snow totals from The National Weather Service showed that as of 6 a.m. Saturday, about 3 inches of snow had fallen in Chamberlain.
Wondering where the heaviest snow has fallen since Friday morning, or why Interstates in western South Dakota and the Nebraska Panhandle are closed (as of 11 am Saturday)? Much of the I-90 corridor west of Chamberlain received 8+ inches, and it's still snowing! pic.twitter.com/4pgOxPMn8s
— NWS Sioux Falls (@NWSSiouxFalls) November 30, 2019
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