A group of caring individuals in Alaska is receiving accolades for their courageous actions in rescuing a pilot and two children who survived a plane crash on a frozen lake.
Terry Godes (right) / ABC News
The small aircraft, a Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser, was reported overdue Sunday night near Tustumena Lake and the Kenai Mountains, close to Homer, according to the Associated Press.
After almost 12 hours of intense searching, volunteer pilot Tyler Godes spotted the wreckage. “I saw the wing up there, it broke my heart. I know what happens when airplanes break through the ice,” Godes said. Initially thinking the worst, he was relieved to find that the pilot and children had survived.
Dale Eicher, a local with search and rescue experience, immediately contacted Alaska State Troopers upon hearing about the downed plane. He knew the person who found the wreckage might not have cell service to report the discovery.
“I called the troopers immediately because I was still in cell service and I knew it was a really good chance that the guy that had found him was not in cell service,” Eicher told KTUU. “I was really shocked. I didn’t expect that we would find them. I didn’t expect that we would find them alive for sure … it doesn’t always turn out this well.”
Scott Holmes, a family friend, commended the community’s swift response in locating the survivors. His Facebook post seeking help was shared over 400 times, demonstrating the power of community support.
“My daughter told me there were 420 shares on my post,” Holmes said. “I‘m proud of the guys that stepped up and went out and helped out.”
Rescuers managed to reach the crash site and transport the pilot and two children, who are family members, to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, as confirmed by Alaska State Troopers spokesperson Austin McDaniel.
Dennis Hogenson, Western Pacific Region Chief of the National Transportation Safety Board, hailed the rescue as “remarkable and good news.”
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