Personal Injury Law

Plane Crash into Atlantic Ocean Kills two Local Residents

By LaBovick Law

Two local residents died over the weekend when the plane they were flying in crashed into the Atlantic Ocean just south of Fort Pierce, Fla. The single-engine Yak-52 plane piloted by 60-year-old Donald T. Hopkins crashed just east of Nettles Island and quickly sank Saturday morning. His passenger, 39-year-old James B. Dooms, also died in the crash.

The crash occurred in St. Lucie County around 11:45 a.m. Eyewitnesses reported that the plane was flying low and relatively close to the beach, but that it appeared to be functioning normally and not smoking prior to the crash. The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Department recovered the bodies of Mr. Hopkins and Mr. Dooms shortly after the crash.

In a Sun-Sentinel article about the incident, a colleague described Hopkins as 'a man who sought adventure but was very careful about it.' Dooms, of North Palm Beach, was an ex-punk rock band manager turned president of a high-end cabinet company who had a passion for action sports photography. Our thoughts and prayers go out to their loved ones.

Authorities are unclear on what caused the plane to go down,  the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is currently investigating the crash. According to NTSB data, 244 total General Aviation accidents occurred between January 1 and March 31, 2010. There were a total of 159 aviation accidents involving single engine personal aircrafts such as the Yak-52 that crashed in Port St. Lucie.

Man killed in plane crash recalled as gentle ex-punk – Palm Beach Post

Fort Lauderdale businessman killed in plane crash in St. Lucie – Sun-Sentinel

Preliminary Monthly Summary of U.S. Civil Aviation Accidents – NTSB

Full post as published by LaBovick Injury Law Blog on May 19, 2010 (boomark / email).