U.S. Coast Guard confirmed at least one 1 dead and 9 people missing after floatplane crashed Sunday afternoon in Puget Sound in Washington state

Washington State, Langley — The United States Coast Guard said that the accident of a floatplane that occurred on Sunday afternoon in Puget Sound in the state of Washington resulted in the death of one person and the disappearance of another, including a kid.

According to a news release issued by the organization, the plane was its route from Friday Harbor, a well-known tourist area located in the San Juan Islands, to Renton, a suburb of Seattle located to the south.

Along with other neighboring rescue and law enforcement authorities, the lengthy search included participation from the Coast Guard with four vessels, a helicopter, and an aircraft for search and rescue. According to a statement released by the Coast Guard late on Sunday night, two vessels were going to continue searching throughout the night, and air patrols were going to resume as soon as it got light.

It was 3:11 p.m. when the crash was reported.

As of approximately 9 p.m., the Coast Guard reported that nine persons were still missing in addition to the one dead that had been found. The authorities stated that they did not know what caused the collision.

The jet went down in Mutiny Bay, which is located off of Whidbey Island. This location is about 30 miles to the north of Seattle’s central business district and is approximately midway between Friday Harbor and Renton.

According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the aircraft in question was a single-engine propeller plane modelled as a de Havilland DHC-3 Otter.

In the area surrounding Puget Sound, which is an entrance of the Pacific Ocean, floatplanes, which are equipped with pontoons that allow them to land on water, are a regular sight. There are many flights that take place each day between the Seattle area and the San Juan Islands, which are located to the north of Seattle and are known for their breathtaking scenery and ability to attract visitors from all over the world.

These aircraft, which also operate between Seattle and Vancouver, British Columbia, routinely fly over Seattle and land on Lake Washington, which is located not too far from the iconic Space Needle that the city is known for.

The authorities believe that the airplane was supposed to land at Renton, which is located on the southeastern shore of Lake Washington and approximately 10 miles southeast of Seattle.

In 2019, a collision in flight between two tourist planes in Alaska claimed the lives of six people. The floatplanes that were based in Ketchikan were transporting people who had been on excursions to Misty Fjords National Monument. These passengers originated from the cruise ship known as the Royal Princess.