Tuesday, police revealed that a small plane that crashed into a lake straddling the Arizona-Utah state boundary, killing two and wounding five, was carrying seven French tourists and a pilot.
Officials with the Kane County Sheriff’s Office in Utah claimed that witnesses saw the Page-bound plane crash into Lake Powell near Face Canyon soon before 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration stated in a statement that the pilot of the single-engine Cessna 207 reported an issue with the engine before the plane crashed.
The airplane was discovered in 120 feet of water, and authorities in Kane County said that two persons perished on board.
Sheriff’s officials reported that divers from the Utah Department of Public Safety attempted to collect the bodies. The deceased and injured have not yet been identified.
After the collision, the pilot and witnesses were able to rescue four passengers onto boats, according to authorities.
Three passengers were airlifted to St. George Regional Hospital with serious injuries, while two passengers with lesser injuries were transferred by boat to Antelope Marina and subsequently brought to Page Hospital.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are conducting an investigation into the crash’s cause.
The U.N. stated earlier this month that the water levels at Lake Powell, the nation’s second-largest artificial reservoir, are at an all-time low and dangerously close to reaching “dead pool status.” The last time the lake was at capacity was in 1999, but the water level is now dozens of feet lower than it was only a year ago.
