Fatal Florida Crash of Hurricane Relief Plane
A small plane carrying hurricane relief supplies to Jamaica crashed in Coral Springs, Florida, just a few minutes after takeoff on Monday morning. The two people on board were killed. They have been identified as 53-year-old Alexander Wurm and his 22-year-old daughter, Serena.
The moment of impact was captured on video by a backyard camera that showed the plane crashing into a pond in the Windsor Bay community.
The flight took off from the Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport around 10:14 a.m. ET, according to the Associated Press. Coral Springs Police said they responded to the crash at 10:19 a.m., shutting down Creekside Drive.
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They advised residents that a strong police presence would remain in the area throughout Tuesday as investigators collected evidence. Mike Moser, the deputy fire chief for the Coral Springs-Parkland Fire Department, told WSVN-TV that the entire plane had not been found yet.
One resident said he and his wife were in their home when the plane came down, destroying his fence before hitting the water.
“We heard the strangest sound. I never heard anything like it before, and apparently that was when this plane must have flown between my home and my neighbor’s house,” Kenneth DeTrolio told the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
The pilot, Alexander Wurm, was the founder of Ignite The Fire Ministry. In a Facebook post sharing news of his death, the group said Wurm was dedicated to “empowering the youth through missions and evangelism across the Caribbean.”
Alexander Wurm and his daughter Serena died Monday when their small plane crashed in Coral Springs, Florida.
(Photo from Ignite The Fire Ministry via Facebook)
Wurm is survived by two other children and his wife.
The same plane made four other trips to and from Jamaica in the past week, according to the Associated Press. A Facebook post from Ignite The Fire showed Wurm delivering supplies to Montego Bay.
Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica on Oct. 28 as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, devastating the western region of the island.
(MORE: Melissa’s Impact – See Jamaica’s Dramatic Before And After)