Coast Guard suspends search for plane crash victims near Seattle, one found dead

Flight from tourist destination near Canada went down in Puget Sound about halfway through trip

By Greg Piper

Published: September 5, 2022 5:38pm

Updated: September 5, 2022 6:13pm

The Coast Guard has suspended its search for nine victims in a floatplane crash after scouring 2,100 nautical miles of the Puget Sound northwest of Seattle, the Associated Press reports.

A 10th person was found dead soon after the crash was reported Sunday afternoon, with witnesses claiming they saw it plunge into the water nose first. The National Transportation Safety Board is sending a team to investigate the crash.

The plane was headed back from Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands, a popular tourist destination near Victoria, Canada, to Northwest Seaplanes' headquarters in Renton south of Seattle. It went down about halfway between the two, near Whidbey Island. The victims include one child.

The Coast Guard said it didn't find any victims or even debris in the overnight search. Northwest Seaplanes says it has a 24-year record of "accident and incident free flying."