The bodies of a married couple and two of their grandchildren were recovered in waters near the Bahamas on Sept. 8 by relatives searching for their family a day after the small plane they were flying in crash.
Mario Lamar, 80, was piloting the aircraft with his wife, Lili Lamar, 79, granddaughter, Sofia Sosa, 28, and grandson Christian Sosa, 22, when the plane crash went down Sept. 7. The family spent Labor Day weekend in the Bahamas and were on their way back home to Miami.
A family spokesperson told the Miami Herald the father of the two grandchildren went to the area to search for his son, daughter and their grandparents.
“The search and recovery mission was conducted alongside family members and civilians who answered our call for help. Our
relatives ultimately located our loved ones and had to bring them aboard their own vessels,” family spokesperson Silvia Larrieu said in a statement. “We are deeply grateful to everyone who supported us, searched alongside us, and kept our family in their prayers. We respectfully ask for privacy as we mourn this unimaginable loss.”
What happened to plane that crashed with 4 Florida family members?
Relatives became concerned hours later when messages were not going through. They looked up the plane, a Piper PA-34 Seneca, on FlightAware, according to the Miami Herald.
Radar showed the plane was last seen about 11 a.m. The plane’s speed rapidly shifted up and down, and then the altitude dropped from about 10,000 feet to 3,700 feet in three minutes. It also was seen on radar looping in a circle.
Bahamian officials, along with the U.S. Coast Guard, had to pause the search Monday due to bad weather. Tuesday morning, the Royal Bahamian Defence Force said in a statement the search, “was postponed until conditions became favourable.”
Michelle Spitzer is a journalist for The USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA. As the network’s Rapid Response reporter, she covers Florida’s breaking news. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://floridatoday.com/newsletters
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Relatives find bodies of Florida family members killed in plane crash
