Four people were killed when two small planes collided above a lake in Florida on Tuesday afternoon.
The fixed-wing Piper Cherokee, operated by a training school for Polk State College, was carrying instructor Faith Irene Baker, 24, and student, Zachary Jean Mace, 19.
The other aircraft, a Piper J-3 Cub seaplane, was carrying Randall Elbert Crawford, 67, of Pennsylvania and a second person whose identity has not yet been released.
The aircraft collided at about 2pm Tuesday over Lake Hartridge, between Orlando and Tampa, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said – next to Winter Haven Regional Airport.
Four people were killed when a seaplane collided with a fixed-wing plane above a lake in Florida on Wednesday afternoon. Pictured is the seaplane partially visible at the surface
Instructor Faith Irene Baker, 24, (pictured in the center) was flying in the Piper Cherokee with 19-year-old Polk State College student Zachary Jean Mace, 19
It is not clear how the accident happened but on impact both planes crashed into the water.
The seaplane remained partially visible at the surface while the other sank 21 feet to the bottom of the lake.
The four people killed were the only occupants of the two planes.
‘All of a sudden it was a giant boom,’ Caridad Fernandez, who lives along the lake, told WESH-TV. ‘It literally sounded like when a rocket takes off and hits the atmosphere.’
Fernandez said she and many of her neighbors, about 40 miles southwest of Orlando, ran outside after hearing the collision.
‘We pretty much saw everything hit the water,’ she said.
‘It was just helicopter after helicopter after police siren. Everyone just kind of came in,’ she added.
Rescue workers attended the scene and a dive team was sent to examine the submerged plane. Four bodies were pulled from the planes, the sheriff said.
Baker was a pilot and flight instructor with Sunrise Aviation, which offers flight training to students of Florida State College in Jacksonville and Polk State University in Lakeland.
Mace was a student at Polk State College and both were from Winter Haven.
The Piper J-3 Cub (pictured) carrying Randall Elbert Crawford, 67, of Pennsylvania remained floating on the lake’s surface
The two planes collided at about 2pm on Tuesday over Lake Hartridge, between Orlando and Tampa, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said
‘Our Polk State College family is devastated by this tragedy,’ Polk State President Angela Garcia Falconetti said. ‘We extend our deepest condolences to their families, friends, and colleagues.’
Crawford of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and another person were aboard the seaplane.
The name of the second person was not released as next of kin had not been contacted, Judd said.
That plane was operated by Jack Brown’s Seaplane Base on Lake Jessie, which is adjacent to Lake Hartridge.
A nearby church, the People’s Church, released a statement on Wednesday morning paying tribute to Baker.
‘We mourn with all of the families involved but one of the victims of the crash was our own Faith Baker. Faith was a lover of Jesus, an invaluable member of our worship team, & a sweet, sweet young lady’ it read. ‘Please pray for her husband, Johnathan & her parents as they navigate through this difficult time.’
Polk County Sheriff’s Department said on Tuesday evening it was no longer leading a search and rescue operation but instead a recovery operation
Fernandez described how the crash shocked the community.
‘There’s kids on our lake, there’s people who jet ski on our lake,’ Fernandez said.
‘That’s the lake I grew up on. That’s something where we would go tubing and everything else and now it’s kind of terrifying.’
The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA will investigate what caused the collision.
‘Please keep the families in your prayers during this difficult and stressful time,’ Judd said.
