Janet Kroll Of Mount Prospect Was Among Those Who Died In Alaska Plane Crash On Thursday
JUNEAU, Alaska (CBS Chicago/CBS News) -- A suburban woman was among those who were killed when a small sightseeing plane crashed in Alaska on Thursday, with no survivors.
Janet Kroll, 77, of Mount Prospect, was one of five cruise ship passengers who boarded the plane for an excursion. The pilot was also killed.
The plane went down 300 miles southeast of Juneau. It crashed into steep, mountainous terrain Thursday morning.
U.S. Coast Guard teams found the wreckage within hours, but poor visibility has prevented them from reaching the bodies.
Coast Guard teams are hoping for better weather on Monday.
The plane, a de Havilland Beaver, was owned by Southeast Aviation LLC.
The five passengers on the flight were from the Holland America Line cruise ship Nieuw Amsterdam, the company said in a statement. The ship stopped in Ketchikan on Thursday and delayed its afternoon departure after the plane crash. The company said it was making counseling services available to guests and crew.
The other victims were identified as Mark Henderson, 69, and Jacquelyn Komplin, 60, of Napa, California; Andrea McArthur, 55, and Rachel McArthur, 20, of Woodstock, Georgia; and pilot Rolf Lanzendorfer, 64, of Elum, Washington.
Ketchikan is a popular stop for cruise ships visiting Alaska, and cruise ship passengers can take various sightseeing excursions while in port.
Popular among them are small plane flights to Misty Fjords National Monument, where visitors can see glacier valleys, snow-capped peaks and lakes in the wilderness area.
In 2019, two sightseeing planes collided in midair, killing six of the 16 people on board the two planes.
The National Transportation Safety Board is trying to determine what caused the crash.