Two Indiana couples were recognized by the Venice, Florida police department on Thursday. They were died in a small plane crash near the Gulf Coast on Wednesday night.
William Jeffrey Lumpkin, the pilot, was 64 years old, and Rick Joe Beaver, the passenger, was 60. They were both from Indiana.
Police were able to identify the additional fatalities as Patricia Ann Lumpkin, 68, and Elizabeth Anne Beaver, 57, by Thursday afternoon. It is assumed that the women were the husbands of the men. According to police, there were only the four of them on board.
Just after 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, a single-engine Pipe PA-32R plane fell into the Gulf of Mexico west of the city’s fishing pier. The disaster occurred at Venice Airport.
A tweet about the incident confirming the names of the victims.
They are believed to be the males’ spouses – Patricia Ann Lumpkin, 68, also of Fishers, and Elizabethe Anne Beaver, 57, of Noblesville. The wreckage is at a depth of approximately 23 feet. VPD has been in contact with the victims’ families and our hearts certainly go out to them.
— City of Venice, FL (@CityofVeniceFL) April 6, 2023
Police in Venice Many people on the pier saw the jet crash and contacted 911, according to Capt. Andy Leisenring. Police “could not deploy a diving team until we had daylight,” he claimed.
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According to him, the plane was discovered just before noon on Thursday beneath roughly 23 feet of water.
About 5 o’clock on Wednesday, Leisenring claimed the two couples boarded a flight from St. Petersburg to Venice. They left the aircraft parked at the airport and went to a pier restaurant for supper with pals. They arrived back at the airport about 9 o’clock and crashed just before 9:30.
The debris field was still being searched Thursday morning by teams from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Sarasota Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Coast Guard.
Both the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Agency have been informed.
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