Possible human remains found in search for missing plane
CLEVELAND — Authorities searching for a missing plane that was carrying six people said Friday that a passenger seat containing possible human remains was recovered from debris in Lake Erie.
Officials said the remains were being analyzed by a medical examiner to determine if they are human. They said the remains were found on a seat from the plane’s passenger compartment.
The plane disappeared more than a week ago.
Earlier Friday, officials with the city of Cleveland were disputing local media reports that the fuselage of plane had been located in Lake Erie.
In a tweet, the city said: "Recovery Ops: INVESTIGATORS HAVE NOT FOUND AN INTACT FUSELAGE. DIVERS ARE IN WATER"
Minutes later, city officials issued an email statement:
"Divers are in the water. Sonar has been deployed. Search and recovery efforts are underway. Erroneous information is being reported in the media. All confirmed information will be released from the City of Cleveland Joint Information Center as it is available. Such erroneous information can be detrimental to operations and shows disregard for the grieving families. A temporary flight restriction has been put in place by the FAA. (National Transportation Safety Board) investigators are here, but are not available to answer questions at this time."
The small a Cessna 525 Citation business jet has been missing since Dec. 29 when it dropped off radar shortly after taking off from Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland.
John Fleming, his wife, Sue, their two sons — Jack and Andrew — and two neighbors, Brian and Megan Casey, were on board the plane after visiting Cleveland to attend the Cavaliers' game. They were flying to Ohio State University in Columbus, but the plane dropped from radar about two miles north of Lake Erie.
More than 100 pieces of debris have been found, but the plane has yet to be recovered.
Early Friday morning, vessels equipped with sonar, divers and NTSB equipment returned to Lake Erie to search for the plane after an underwater locator beacon detector received multiple transmissions Thursday.
Visibility in Lake Erie is limited to 2-3 inches.
"As divers slowly move toward the signals, they will feel around the bottom of the lake for the aircraft," according to a news release from city officials. "This will be a slow and deliberate process that will take several hours to search even a small area."
The search site was a 25- by 325-foot area, city officials said Thursday.
Weather and water conditions Thursday did not allow for divers to enter the water or for sonar equipment to be used.
Follow Ryan Haidet on Twitter: @RyanWKYC