ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Dave Dittman, a former aide and longtime family friend of former Sen. Ted Stevens, says Stevens was killed in a plane crash near Dillingham Monday night. Dittman says he received a call overnight Monday that said the former senator was dead, but no official confirmation has been made.
Nine people were on board, including former NASA Chief Sean O'Keefe. Five people were killed in the crash, but other identities were not known, nor are the conditions of the survivors.
GCI released a statement Tuesday morning that confirmed it owned the plane that went down, but did not confirm or deny any fatalities.
Late through the night rescue crews were battling bad weather conditions to reach the scene, where Good Samaritans had already arrived and were providing medical assistance, said Air National Guard spokesperson Maj. Guy Hayes.
A military C-130 and a Pave Hawk helicopter were waiting in Dillingham for the weather to break and reached the site just after 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
The Air Guard received the call about the crash 17 miles north of Dillingham at about 7 p.m. Monday night.
A woman who answered the phone at former state Sen. Ben Stevens' home said they would not comment.
The National Transportation Safety Board is sending a "Go-Team" from Washington D.C. early Tuesday morning to the crash site. An NTSB official said the team is responsible for investigating the most high-profile and catastrophic crashes.
Theodore "Ted" Fulton Stevens (born November 18, 1923) is a former Republican United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009. Stevens was President pro tempore in the 108th and 109th Congresses from January 3, 2003, to January 3, 2007. Stevens is the longest-serving Republican senator in history (Strom Thurmond, who might otherwise have held this title, was a Democrat until 1964) and 7th longest-serving senator in history. Stevens was Alaska's senior senator all but 10 days of his tenure. Stevens was replaced as President pro tem by Robert Byrd assuming Byrd's previous honorary role of "President pro tempore emeritus." He is only the third Senator to hold the title of President pro tempore emeritus, having been preceded in this position by Byrd and Strom Thurmond.
Vivat Jesus Knights of Columbus, Fourth Degree In Him, all things are possible
The above is "democrap liberal" love. See what nasty guttersnipe pieces of excrement run every level of our government from top to bottom. Had enough yet?
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