Boaters see spiraling plane plunge into lake, prompting a search in Georgia, cops say

Boaters watched as a plane plunged into a popular Georgia lake, sparking a search for clues, officials said.

People were fishing on Lake Hartwell when they watched the “plane make a circle, go up then spiral down,” Hart County Sheriff Mike Cleveland told McClatchy News in a phone interview. He said the plane “disappeared under the water within seconds.”

Deputies received several calls on Saturday, Sept. 10, prompting divers to search for the plane. A team from Oconee County, South Carolina — which also borders the lake — found the wreckage in about 120 feet of water, officials said.

“It’s just devastating,” Summer Strickland, who was on shore during the search, told WSPA.

The aircraft was discovered on the Georgia side of the lake, where it reportedly landed upside down. Officials are working to recover a body that was found inside the submerged plane and hadn’t identified the deceased person, according to WHNS.

The pilot was believed to be the only person on board when the plane crashed, the Federal Aviation Administration told McClatchy News in an email.

Officials said the crash was reported at about noon on Lake Hartwell, a popular fishing destination that lies along the South Carolina border. The recreation spot is roughly 110 miles northeast of Atlanta.

The FAA in its preliminary statement said the lake is close to Anderson Regional Airport in South Carolina but said the plane crashed “under unknown circumstances.” The twin-engine Beechcraft’s registered owner was tied to Florida, according to federal officials.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which reportedly is leading the investigation into the crash, didn’t immediately share additional information with McClatchy News on Sept. 12.

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