Father, Son Die In Rural IL Plane Crash En Route Home From Baseball Game: Authorities

WATERLOO, IL — An Oklahoma man and his son died early Friday in a plane crash in rural Illinois, according to local authorities. The two had been en route home from a St. Louis Cardinals game when the plane crashed into a tree in rural Waterloo, Monroe County.

At approximately 2:34 a.m. on Friday, July 10, the Waterloo Fire Department, Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, Monroe County EMS, and the Monroe County Emergency Management Agency (EMA) were dispatched following reports of a possible plane crash.

Authorities searched for the Beechcraft 95-B55 Baron plane for hours, with low cloud cover, rain and poor visibility hindering aerial search operations throughout the early morning hours, officials said. An extensive multi-agency search operation was initiated involving law enforcement officers, firefighters, EMS personnel and emergency management personnel.

Just before 6 a.m., drones from numerous fire departments throughout Illinois and the St. Louis metropolitan region as well as a medical helicopter were called in to aid in the search.

Authorities located the plane in a treeline just after 7:30 a.m. The aircraft was reportedly destroyed in the crash, according to initial information from the Federal Aviation Administration.

The pilot and passenger—identified only as a 48-year-old Oklahoma man and his 22-year-old son—were pronounced dead at the scene.

Preliminary information indicates the aircraft departed from St. Louis Regional Airport in Bethalto, Illinois, and was en route to Siloam Springs Municipal Airport in Arkansas.

Investigators learned the pilot and his son attended a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game before departing on their return flight home.

Investigators said it appeared the plane was heading into an area of developing severe weather. Flight data indicates the pilot appeared to begin a turn, possibly in an attempt to avoid the storm, before entering what appeared to be a descending spiral. Radar contact was subsequently lost.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are leading the investigation to determine the cause of the crash.