Seattle search suspended as Coast Guard ends hunt for pilot, passengers of floatplane crash

The floatplane was heading toward an airport south of Seattle when it crashed in Mutiny Bay with 10 people on board

The Coast Guard suspended its search on Monday for victims of a plane crash that left nine people missing and one person dead in a bay north of Seattle, Washington.

The float plane, identified by Flightradar24 as a 55-year-old de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter, crashed shortly after 3 p.m. into Mutiny Bay, about 30 miles north of downtown Seattle.

One child and nine adults were on board. One deceased individual was recovered from the water on Sunday afternoon, but nine others are still missing. Their next of kin have been notified of the halt to the search, the Coast Guard said.

A Coast Guard boat and Kitsap County Sheriff boat search the area near Freeland, Wash., on Whidbey Island, Sept. 5, 2022, where a chartered floatplane crashed the day before. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

A Coast Guard vessel searches near Whidbey Island where a chartered floatplane crashed. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

A Coast Guard plane searches area near Whidbey Island. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

(AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

The plane, which was operated by Northwest Seaplanes, took off from Friday Harbor and was heading to Renton Municipal Airport, which is just south of Seattle.

Northwest Seaplanes did not respond to a request for comment on Monday.

TUPELO, MISSISSIPPI PILOT WHO THREATENED TO RAM PLANE INTO WALMART IS DOWN, IN CUSTODY 

The Coast Guard searched throughout the night, but "no additional individuals were recovered and no debris spotted." Two aircraft and multiple patrol boat crews continued the search on Monday morning before it was suspended.

Several other agencies, including the Island County Sheriff, Snohomish County Sheriff and South Whidbey Fire/EMS, were also involved in the search.

Renton Municipal Airport, home base for Northwest Seaplanes and Friday Harbor Seaplanes, is seen on Sept. 5, 2022, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Rick Rasmussen, who was on the beach with his wife when the plane crashed, told Fox 13 Seattle that they heard a loud boom followed by water splashing 20 to 30 feet in the air.

"It sounded like dynamite went off," Rasmussen told the local news outlet, noting that they were looking through binoculars but couldn't see any wreckage or debris.

The cause of the crash has not yet been determined.

Load more..