Albuquerque – A medical plane crashed overnight, killing all five aboard, including a toddler en route to a hospital, authorities said. A search helicopter found the wreckage early Monday.
Tracy Smith and her daughter, 15-month-old Lilly Smith, were among those killed, said Peter Olson, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety. Lilly was the patient, but it’s unknown why she was being taken to a hospital.
Olson said police were withholding the identities of the other victims – the 56-year-old pilot, a 44-year-old nurse and a 40-year-old paramedic – pending notification of next of kin.
The area where the plane went down is marked by rugged, mountainous terrain. There were reports of nearby thunderstorms earlier in the evening, but it wasn’t known if weather was a factor in the crash. The cause of the crash was under investigation.
Smith, a single mother, worked two jobs – at a golf course in the summer and as a ski instructor for the disabled in the winter, said William Riggles, who worked with her at Ski Apache. Everyone admired her commitment to her daughter, he said.
“She worked her tail off to make a life for that girl. She loved being a mom – that was her world,” said Riggles, also a ski instructor. “It’s hard to make a living and raise a kid, and everyone really respected her for that. She put a lot of energy into giving Lilly the attention she needed.”
The King Air plane was owned by Las Cruces-area Southwest Medevac, which, according to the company, has been in business since 1994 and never had a plane go down.
The twin-engine turboprop left Sierra Blanca Regional Airport about 10:40 p.m. Sunday on a flight to University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. It crashed almost immediately in Devil’s Canyon in the Lincoln National Forest, Olson said.
