Former mayor of town in Alaska among 4 men killed in a small plane crash

Former mayor of a small town in Alaska, Eric Middlebrook, was among four men killed in a small plane crash near the remote Alaskan town of Seldovia, officials confirmed Thursday. The crash occurred in shallow waters, and the bodies of the victims were recovered after the plane came to rest in about 15 feet of water. Troopers had to wait for the tide to recede before they could access the wreckage and retrieve the victims. The plane, a Piper PA-24, departed from Anchorage and was heading to the airport in Seldovia, approximately 135 miles to the southwest. The pilot, identified as Eric Middlebrook, 68, of Anchorage, was an experienced aviator who had previously operated a commercial refrigerator business. His passengers included Ronald Schmidt, 65; Lance Schmidt, 20; and Daniel Simons, 82, all from California. According to the Alaska Department of Public Safety, these individuals were the sole occupants of the aircraft. Middlebrook, who had lived in Bethel, a town of around 6,000 residents located on the Kuskokwim River, served as mayor there from 2006 until his departure. He had moved to Anchorage in recent years but maintained regular visits to Bethel. A member of the Bethel City Council, Mark Springer, noted that Middlebrook had been a familiar figure in the community, often traveling by plane to service refrigeration units in the villages along the Kuskokwim River Delta. “He was a fixture in the community and he was a respected guy. He was known all over the YK (Yukon, Kuskokwim) Delta. It’s a tragic loss,” Springer said. Middlebrook, who graduated from a high school in Northern California, had a career spanning both public service and business. Family members of Middlebrook, Schmidt, and Simons did not respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press. The National Transportation Safety Board’s Alaska regional chief, Clint Johnson, stated that the plane had come to rest in Seldovia Slough near the shore, requiring rescuers to wait for the tide to subside before they could reach the wreckage. A statement posted on Seldovia’s website highlighted the community’s response to the tragedy, noting that neighbors, friends, and first responders quickly mobilized to assist. The message emphasized the role of small planes in connecting isolated communities, calling them essential to daily life. “Some of those involved will carry the images and emotions of today with them for a long time,” the statement said. “Please remember them, too.” The incident follows another fatal plane crash in western Alaska less than a week prior, where eight people died when a plane crashed at a remote military site. That crash occurred during a second attempt to land in heavy fog, with pilots unable to see the gravel airstrip. U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska expressed her condolences on social media, highlighting the challenges of travel in the state. “Our vast distances and lack of road connections mean we depend on aviation to knit our state together, which makes accidents like this all the more heartbreaking,” she wrote. As investigators continue their work, the cause of the crash remains under examination. The National Transportation Safety Board is currently conducting an investigation into the incident. With limited infrastructure and reliance on air travel, such tragedies underscore the risks inherent in navigating Alaska’s rugged terrain.