A small plane crashed in the Alaskan wilderness killing two and injuring four local residents.
August 15, 2011- A small remote village in the Alaskan wilderness was saddened and shocked when news came that one of their three teachers had been killed and two had been injured. The pilot of the plane was also killed. Four passengers, a husband and wife along with their son and daughter were also injured in the Saturday night crash.
Iditarod School District superintendent Karen Ladegard said the Cessna 207 was heading to Anvik Saturday night when it crashed. The injured were Don and Rosemary Evans along with Don Jr. their 10 year old son and McKenzie their eight year old daughter. The couple was arriving at the community to split a teaching position at the school of only 18 students. The school was set to begin classes on August 17th.
None of the injuries were reported to be life threatening, but all four were still hospitalized. The two who lost their lives were Julie Walker, a lifelong resident of Anvik and veteran teacher in the community and Ernie Chase, the pilot who also was originally from the village. The small community of just 85 was hard hit by the accident.
The Cessna crashed about 37 miles from McGrath where it took off heading to Anvik. The crash area was hilly and full of tough terrain and was misty and visibility was low at the time of the crash. The NTSB has opened an investigation into the accident.
