[Trending News] Coast Guard: ‘Item of interest’ found in extensive search for missing plane with 10 onboard near Nome

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – An extensive search for a Bering Air plane carrying 10 people, including the pilot, is ongoing after it went missing late Thursday afternoon near Nome.

In an update from multiple agencies Friday afternoon in a press conference, the U.S. Coast Guard said an “item of interest” was identified by an aircraft involved in the search effort.

“What that is and what that might shake out to be, and what the status of the people who may or may not be there is, I can’t speculate to at this time,” said Lt. Cmdr. Ben McIntyre-Coble with the Coast Guard rescue coordination center in Juneau.

McIntyre-Coble said a Coast Guard MH-60 helicopter was being sent to the area to look into it. He was unable to provide any further details on what it could be when asked by reporters.

The plane — a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft owned by Bering Air — was reported to have been flying from Unalakleet to Nome, according to the Nome Volunteer Fire Department, when it went off radar screens at roughly 3:16 p.m. Thursday.

Lt. Ben Endres with the Alaska State Troopers said that all 10 people onboard were adults.

McIntyre-Coble said the Coast Guard received an alert notice of an overdue plane on Thursday and said radar data showed that around 3:18 p.m., the plane experienced “some kind of event that caused rapid loss in elevation and speed.”

An FAA weather camera located in Nome showed what appeared to be near-whiteout conditions over several hours Thursday afternoon.

Officials added that the weather conditions at the time showed about 3º Fahrenheit (-16ºC) with a sea water temperature of about 29º Fahrenheit (-1.7ºC).

The Alaska Air National Guard also launched an HC-130, as well as an HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter to aid in the search effort after the Coast Guard’s C-130 searched a broader expanse overnight.

Earlier on Friday, the FBI said it was assisting other federal, state and local agencies in the search and rescue efforts for the Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft in the Norton Sound region.

“The FBI is ready to augment local, state, and federal resources if the situation develops that requires additional specialized capabilities,” the FBI wrote in an email. “We remain in close contact with our local, state, and federal partners.”

The Nome Volunteer Fire Department added that the State Department of Transportation is looking at opening an area road, and Bering Air is ready to launch its own search aircraft “but is letting Coast Guard maintain the airspace.”

The USCG on Friday morning assigned a MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Cold Bay to the air search between Unalakleet and Nome, which includes the icy waters of Norton Sound. A larger USCG aircraft searched overnight but did not report any sightings.

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy responded to the news of the missing plane with a heartfelt response on social media, writing “[First Lady] Rose and I are heartbroken by the disappearance of the Bering Air flight over Norton Sound. Our prayers are with the passengers, the pilot, and their loved ones during this difficult time. We are closely monitoring the ongoing search and rescue efforts and stand ready to support in any way we can.”

Original story: A plane was reported missing near Nome late Thursday afternoon, according to officials.

Jim West, volunteer fire and ambulance chief in Nome, said a plane went down with 10 people onboard.

The plane — a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft owned by Bering Air — was reported to have been flying from Unalakleet to Nome, according to the Nome Volunteer Fire Department.

The flight took off from Unalakleet at 2:37 p.m., according to Bering Air Director of Operations David Olson.

Data from FlightRadar shows a Bering Air flight last reporting info at 3:16 p.m. over the Norton Sound.

White Mountain fire chief, Jack Adams, told Alaska’s News Source that the plane disappeared from the radar somewhere along the coast of Nome to Topkok. He also said they have crews actively searching a roughly 30-mile stretch in that area.

“They’re prepared to be out all night, they will search here until they find them or somebody else finds them,” Adams said. “If they don’t find anything, we’ll probably rally another crew to go and help.”

Adams said the sea ice is “kind of jumbled” and hard to traverse, so the ground crews are traveling on the Iditarod trail to search.

“We’re hoping [the plane] is on land, being in the water would be the worst-case scenario,” he said.

Alaska State Troopers reported in a dispatch that the flight had nine passengers and one pilot onboard. Troopers said they were contacted by the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center at 4 p.m. regarding the missing plane.

The volunteer department stated it was conducting an active ground search from the communities of Nome and White Mountain, but weather and visibility issues are restricting the air search.

“Word is, all the aircraft are grounded, there’s zero visibility. Basically, you can’t see anything from the air or the ground, and in the dark looking for something in zero visibility is a tough job,” Adams said.

A Nome search and rescue group on snowmachines and other vehicles are preparing to respond to the site, West said.

Norton Sound Health Corporation in Nome put out a notice at 5:25 p.m. that it was “ready to respond to a community medical emergency,” but did not give any other details.

The Nome Volunteer Fire Department wrote on its social pages that families should seek support from Norton Sound.

“We ask the public to please think of those who may be missing at this time, but due to weather and safety concerns please do not form individual search parties,” the message read.

NVFD also wrote that the Coast Guard is scoping out the area, and says the C-130 will be flying in a grid pattern in attempts to locate the missing plane. The C-130 also has specialized equipment for search and rescue that allows them to see people or objects during low visibility conditions.

The Air Force stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson is also providing flight support.

NVFD also posted to its Facebook page a photo of an SAR imagery report of the ice conditions which was provided by Rick Thoman of the University of Alaska Fairbanks using imagery from the Natioinal Oceanic and Aviation Administration.

The volunteer fire department said, “From this we can see a lead in the ice near shore, as well as some ice pack.”

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Editors note: The video of the Nome timelapse has been corrected from the previously reported Golovin timelapse.

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