Sorting through the various reports we’re getting directly from Alaska and from other media outlets, here’s where things stand:
There is still no official confirmation that former Sen. Ted Stevens was on board the plane that crashed sometime Monday evening in a remote area of Alaska. However, at this point everyone seems to be working on the assumption that the plane that went down was the one he was on. Stevens was reported to be en route to a lodge owned by the same company that owns the plane that crashed. I’ve been looking for any information that contradicts the reports that this was the plane Stevens was on, and nothing points in any other direction.
Also reported to be on board the plane was former NASA administrator Sean O’Keefe, who was chancellor of LSU after leaving NASA and now is CEO of the aerospace company EADS North America.
We’ve talked to both the state police and the Coast Guard, and they say their rescuers have still not been able to reach the crash site. They know where it is, but bad weather is hampering their efforts. About five good Samaritans are on the scene. Among them is reported to be a doctor. How they reached the crash site is unclear.
Fatalities have been reported, with the NTSB citing unconfirmed reports that five of the nine people on board were killed. In another sign that VIPs were on the plane, the NTSB chairman is heading to Alaska.
