Small Plane Carrying 4 People Crashes Near Steamboat Springs, Killing Everyone on Board

It is believed that three of the people who died belonged to the same family

NEED TO KNOW

• The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shared in a statement to PEOPLE that an Epic E1000 crashed near Steamboat Springs, Colorado, around 12:20 a.m. local time on Friday, Feb. 13, with four people on board
• The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) told PEOPLE in a statement that preliminary information indicates that the plane crashed into mountainous terrain under unknown circumstances
• The four people on the plane died at the scene, according to The New York Times, Associated Press and Newsweek

Four people are dead after a small plane crashed into mountainous terrain in Colorado.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shared in a statement to PEOPLE that an Epic E1000 crashed near Steamboat Springs, Colorado, around 12:20 a.m. local time on Friday, Feb. 13, with four people on board.

The National Transportation Safety Board told PEOPLE in a statement that preliminary information indicates that the plane crashed into mountainous terrain under unknown circumstances. 

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Routt County Sheriff Doug Scherar told The New York Times that the plane crashed in "a very remote area" of Emerald Mountain.

According to a statement from the sheriff shared with the outlet, search-and-rescue officials were called at 12:40 a.m. and were en route to the site at 1 a.m.

The eight people traveled on foot, by snowmobile, and in tracked vehicles, and assisted in bringing Routt County sheriff’s officers, Steamboat Springs police officers, and the Routt County coroner to the crash site, the outlet reported, citing the statement.

The four people on the plane died at the scene, according to The New York Times, Associated Press, and Newsweek.

“All four victims have been recovered from the scene, and the Routt County Coroner’s Office is working to notify their families today,” a statement from Routt County Coroner Mitch Locke said, per Newsweek.

The New York Times and The Trail-Gazette reported, citing Locke, that it is believed that three of the people who died belonged to the same family.

According to The New York Times, citing Tennessee business records, the plane was registered to ALS Aviation, a limited liability company in Franklin, Tenn.

The outlet reported that the record listed no names associated with the company and that it had been dissolved.

The FAA and NTSB will investigate, with the NTSB leading the investigation and providing any updates.

"An NTSB investigator is en route to the scene and is expected to arrive by this afternoon," the NTSB told PEOPLE in a statement. "Once on site, the investigator will begin the process of documenting the scene and examining the aircraft. The aircraft will then be recovered to a secure facility for further evaluation."

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PEOPLE has reached out to the Routt County Office of the Coroner and the Routt County Sheriff's Office for comment.

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