Deadly floatplane crash rushes bystanders into action

A floatplane crash in Washington state left one man dead and another critically injured Friday morning.

After attempting to take off multiple times around 11 a.m., the plane took a nosedive into Lake Sammamish near a Seattle suburb from about 50 feet up in the air, according to Heather Wong, the public information officer for the Bellevue Fire Department. Bystanders said it sounded like the engine was stalling, she told USA TODAY. 

The plane was a Sea Wind 3000, National Transportation Safety Board spokesperson Sarah Sulick said.

First responders arrived and found local residents trying to rescue the plane’s occupants. The fire department sent swimmers looking for other victims and determined only two people were on the floatplane before it crashed. 

After the incident, a local resident swam underneath the plane and pulled one of the victims on a bystander’s boat, Wong said. Both plane occupants were pulled on a private boat to shore, where bystanders performed CPR until fire crews took over. 

“One survivor is in critical condition and en route to the hospital. The other sadly did not survive,” the department wrote on social media Friday afternoon.

The marine unit of the King County Sheriff’s Office was also on the scene, Eric White, the department’s public information officer, told USA TODAY. Law enforcement did not immediately release the victims’ names, but they were adult men, according to Wong.

'Truly heroic:' Law enforcement praises bystanders who did CPR

Officials lauded the actions of bystanders who sprang into action to help. 

“While we never want anybody to put themselves in a position they are uncomfortable with, the willingness of these residents to jump in to try and save a life was truly heroic,” Wong said. “I would plug taking a CPR class. You never know when you may be the closest person to save someone.” 

It’s not the first time a floatplane crash in Washington state has turned fatal. An accident in September 2022 in Puget Sound near Whidbey Island left the pilot and nine passengers dead. The families of the victims ultimately sued the plane manufacturer, alleging the crash was “entirely preventable.” The cause of Friday’s crash was not immediately clear. 

The NTSB is investigating the crash, the spokesperson said.

Zachary Schermele is a breaking news and education reporter for USA Today. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele.