American Dad and 2 Young Daughters Killed in Caribbean Plane Crash

An American father and his two young daughters were killed when a light aircraft smashed into waters off a Caribbean island Thursday, authorities said.

The plane went down shortly after takeoff from the island of Bequia en route to St. Lucia, the Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force said in a statement. Christian Klepser, 51, and his daughters Madita Klepser, 10, and Annik Klepser, 12, were named as the passengers killed in the incident.

Authorities said the plane—registered with the FAA as a Bellanca 17-30A Super Viking—took off from J.F. Mitchell Airport at around 12:11 p.m. local time. “Moments after taking off, the aircraft experienced difficulties and plummeted into the ocean,” the police statement read. Fishermen and divers rushed to the scene on boats in an attempt to help, authorities said, and the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Coast Guard was alerted to the incident.

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