The Arkansas environmental consulting firm CTEH has expressed deep sorrow after the untimely deaths of five employees aboard a twin-engine Beech BE20 aircraft that crashed shortly after take-off from Little Rock.
According to reports, the aircraft had been en route to Columbus, Ohio, and crashed a few miles south of the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport.
Paul Nony, the senior vice president of CTEH, expressed his deep sorrow upon the news of the company’s Little Rock colleagues passing. He implored everyone to remember the families of those who have passed and the whole CTEH team in their prayers.
The plane’s passengers, including the pilot, were heading to Cleveland after a deadly explosion at a local metal plant earlier in the week caused one fatality and sent multiple people to the hospital. No names or ages of those aboard the aircraft have been released.
Together the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the incident. During the crash, the National Weather Service reported wind gusts of 40 mph in the Little Rock area as a line of thunderstorms moved through.
Witnesses of the crash reported an intense fire, followed by several more minor explosions and a strong burnt smell. Dennis Gordon, who was standing near the crash site, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that the fire he saw was initially red before turning black.