HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
SOUTH HILO PATROL DIVISION
LIEUTENANT CHAD FUKUI
PHONE: 961-2311
AUGUST 28, 2000
MEDIA RELEASE UPDATE
A fire rescue team recovered the body of a woman Monday (August 28, 2000) from within the plane that had sunk in about 80 feet of waters off the Honolii area of South Hilo.
The body is believed to be that of a missing passenger, Laveta Rose Reynolds, 61, of North Collinsville, Oklahoma, but as of 5 p.m., police had not yet made a positive identification.
The body was recovered about 1:45 p.m.
Police have initiated a coroner’s inquest case, and an autopsy will be held to determine the exact cause of death.
The twin-engine Piper Chieftain ditched Friday with the pilot and eight passengers aboard in waters about 200 feet offshore of Kahoa Road in the Honolii surfing area.
Eight persons were rescued, including the pilot, and taken to the Hilo Medical Center for treatment.
The plane, owned by Big Island Air of Kailua-Kona, was on a flight from Kona to Hilo when it went down.
Survivors of the crash were identified as Nicholas A. Vamis, 33, the pilot, of Kailua-Kona; Daoud Srouji, 66, of San Francisco, California; Paul Kemper, 23, of Kamuela, Hawaii; James Reynolds, 64, husband of the missing passenger, of North Collinsville, Oklahoma; and Alvin Taylor, 66, Oretha M. Taylor, 61, Angela J. Taylor, 30, and Lori L. Taylor, 27, all of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.
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