SEATTLE — The human remains found in the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge on Sept. 16 have been identified as one of the victims of the floatplane crash off Whidbey Island.
On Sept. 16, Clallam County Sheriff's Department responded to the wildlife refuge after beachgoers found what was believed to be human remains belonging to a woman. The remains were transported to a local funeral home after being investigated by a Clallam County coroner.
On Friday, the Clallam County Coroner's Office reported the body was identified as 66-year-old Patricia Hicks of Spokane Valley by the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab. Hicks was one of the 10 people aboard the floatplane when it crashed off Whidbey Island on Sept. 4.
Friday's announcement brings the number of victims found and identified to seven, according to Island County Emergency Management. The bodies of Jason Winters, the plane's pilot, Sandra Williams, Ross Mickel, Luke Ludwig and Rebecca Ludwig were recovered during the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) recovery operation earlier this month. Gabrielle Hanna's body was recovered on Sept 4. The bodies of three victims are still missing.
On Sept. 4, the floatplane took off from Friday Harbor as a scheduled commuter flight to the Renton Municipal Airport. Witnesses reported the plane took a nose dive before crashing and disappearing below the surface of the water in Mutiny Bay.
The families of the victims announced they plan to conduct their own investigation into what went wrong, citing that the NTSB's findings are not admissible in court, according to an attorney for the families.
The NTSB released its preliminary report in September which detailed the moments leading to the floatplane crash.
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