ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – 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.
The 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.
Search and rescue volunteers prepare to respond to report of a plane crash near Nome on Feb. 6, 2025.(Viewer-submitted photo)
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.
An FAA weather camera located in Nome showed what appeared to be near-whiteout conditions over several hours Thursday afternoon.
A timelapse shows difficult weather conditions from Nome approximately from 2 to 7 p.m. Feb. 6, 2025.
The Nome volunteer 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.
Nome volunteer department 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 place. 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 Elmendorf is also providing flight support.
The volunteer department also posted to their Facebook, a photo of an SAR imagery report of the ice conditions which was provided by Rick Thoman of UAF using imagery from NOAA.
The volunteer department said, “From this we can see a lead in the ice near shore, as well as some ice pack.”
AR imagery report of the ice conditions was provided by Rick Thoman of UAF utilizing imagery from NOAA.(Rick Thoman of UAF)
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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