2 Victims of Christmas Plane Crash in South Dakota Have Been Identified By Miguel Moreno | December 26, 2018 | theepochtimes.com   Captain Loren McManus of the South Dakota Police Department (SDPD) confirmed the second death on Dec. 26 in an interview with The Epoch Times. The victims have since been identified as well-known Sioux Falls philanthropist couple Vaughn and JoAnn Meyer, both 68, who were both passengers in the plane. The Minnehaha County coroner made the positive identification on Dec. 26, reported AP.   It remains unclear who was piloting the plane, Police Capt. Loren McManus said at a news briefing, reported AP. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has been contacted and two of their contracted companies will now work to collect the wreckage, although the collection date is yet to be confirmed. A team of SDPD officers will monitor the wreckage until they receive further instructions from the NTSB.   When Sioux Falls Fire Rescue (SFFR) arrived on the scene, they immediately saw “heavy smoke, intense heat, and flames coming from the backyard of 4209 and 4213 South Birchwood Avenue,” according to the SDPD’s press release on Dec. 26. Jim Lang, a resident of the neighborhood, described hearing something like an accelerating vehicle running down his block, until he looked outside and saw a yellow ball of fire, reported AP.   Other families like Kimberly Becktold-Erickson’s were enjoying pie and coffee after their Christmas dinner when they heard the plane’s loud engine approaching. Still in shock and disbelief after seeing this happen tonight. We were at my dad's house which is about 100 yards from the crash. We heard the plane and looked out dining room window just as the explosion happened. Prayers to the family and many thanks to the first responders.   After hearing the loud crash, some family members thought it sounded like a plane nose-diving but Kimberly didn’t expect that this was really what had happened. Unsure of what the explosion meant for their neighbors, the family immediately ran outside to see if anyone needed help.   The SFFR were able to quickly contain the most intense parts of the fire and then started to make their way into four properties on which the plane had landed to evacuate any people still inside. Fortunately, the families in all the affected homes were able to escape immediately. Both homes 4209 and 4213 sustained some structural damage, and light to moderate fire damage but no bystanders or firefighters were hurt during the incident.   The next morning on Dec. 26, McManus said that while the two families of the homes that sustained damage had yet to return, they ar expected to be able to return soon as the damage was not severe. This is the second fatal plane crash this year in South Dakota.   A Cessna airplane crash occurred on Nov. 2 in Bradly, South Dakota—about 2 hours away from Sioux Falls. Only the plane’s operator, John Shoemaker, 47, was killed in that crash, according to The Rapid City Journal. The airplane crashed nose-first into a farm area and caused a post-crash fire, according to the NTSB. A witness near the crash site described the noise as “an airplane that seemed to climb and descend twice, followed by a loud noise.”   Full Source Article Here: https://www.theepochtimes.com/2-victims-of-christmas-plane-crash-in-south-dakota-have-been-identified_2748941.html