Two men were found dead in a downed airplane discovered Monday southeast of La Center.
A pilot flying over the area reported seeing the crash site at 4:11 p.m. in a marshy area south of the East Fork Lewis River at the dead end of Bjur Road off Northeast 269th Street, according to a news release from the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.
While circling overhead, the pilot directed emergency personnel to the crash, according to the release.
Clark County Fire & Rescue and sheriff’s deputies then spotted the home build aircraft, which has one engine and two seats, in a shallow pond in about two feet of water.
The plane is registered in Clark County, Sheriff’s Sgt. Fred Nieman said.
Two men, a pilot and a passenger, were found dead inside the plane. The men appeared to die on impact, the release said.
The exact time and circumstances of the crash remain unknown, according to the release.
Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration will conduct an investigation at the site.
The crash was not the first linked to Clark County this year.
In January, a fixed-wing, single-engine plane flown by George Regis, 63, of Battle Ground crashed on Mt. Hood after taking off from Grove Field Airport in Camas.
In March 2018, Mary H. Rosenblum — 65, of Canby, Ore. —, was killed when a small, single-engine airplane she was piloting crashed south of La Center. Like the crash discovered Monday, Rosenblum’s downed plane was found near Daybreak Field airport.
