6 dead in upstate NY plane crash include 2022 NCAA woman of the year, her family: Reports

A small plane that crashed in upstate New Yorkkilled all six people on board, authorities said, including Karenna Groff, the 2022 NCAA woman of the year, and some of her family members. The crash came just days after a similar tragedy in which another family was killed when a helicopter plummeted into the Hudson River in New York City.

The plane, a Mitsubishi MU-2B, was en route to Columbia County Airport in Hudson, New York, April 12 when it crashed into an open field near Copake, a small town about 20 miles southeast of the airport, around 12:15 p.m. local time, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.

The aircraft went down on Two Town Road near Copake and did not damage any structures, Undersheriff Jacqueline Salvatore said at a news conference.

There were no survivors, and all six bodies were being removed from the scene, National Transportation Safety Board member Todd Inman confirmed at a news conference the next day. Inman said some of the victims' family members said the passengers included people traveling to visit relatives for a holiday celebration.

Who was on board the plane?

The New York Times and The Associated Press, citing a family statement, reported that the six victims included doctors, two of their children and their children's partners.

The victims were Karenna Groff; her father, Dr. Michael Groff; her mother, Dr. Joy Saini; her brother, Jared Groff; Alexia Couyutas Duarte, Jared Groff’s partner; and Karenna Groff’s boyfriend, James Santoro, The Times and AP reported.

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The group was reportedly on a trip for a birthday celebration and the Passover holiday.

Deadly plane crash: 3 victims in Boca Raton, Florida, plane crash identified

Who was Karenna Groff?

Karenna Groff played soccer at MIT and was named the 2022 NCAA woman of the year. According to ESPN, during the COVID-19 pandemic Groff co-founded openPPE, which helped create a new design of masks for essential workers.

Probable cause of crash under investigation

Video obtained by authorities showed that the aircraft was intact before crashing at a "high rate of descent into the ground," Inman said.

The cause of the crash is under investigation by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board. The Columbia County Sheriff's Office also has launched an investigation.

"Our mission is to understand not just what happened but why it happened, and to provide recommendations for it not to happen again," Inman said.

"We are actively investigating a fatal plane crash on Two Town Road in the town of Copake, New York," Salvatore said. "We do not know what happened at this time."

Salvatore said the investigation would take a "couple of days," noting that accessibility was difficult because the plane was in the middle of a muddy field. The NTSB will hold a news conference at 6 p.m. ET April 13 to provide additional details about investigation.