Rescue crews searched Lake Erie on Friday for signs of a twin-engine plane carrying three adults and three children that went missing Thursday night soon after taking off from an Ohio airport, officials said.
The 11-seat aircraft dropped off radar just before 11 p.m. local time after leaving Burke Lakefront Airport on the shore of Lake Erie north of downtown Cleveland, U.S. Coast Guard Chief of Response Michael Mullen told a news conference on Friday.
The Cessna Citation 525, bound for Ohio State University Airport, disappeared after flying about two miles over the lake, Mullen said.
Lake Erie is the fourth-largest by surface area of North America's five Great Lakes, and also the most shallow. It is 210 feet at its deepest point, which makes for rough and unpredictable waters. Mullen said the search had been halted on Thursday night due to 12 to 14 foot seas.
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Coast guard crews searched with a helicopter and fixed-wing plane over a section of Lake Erie that is about 50 feet deep, Mullen said, adding that there were no signs of debris.
Mullen said there was no evidence of an emergency call before communications with the aircraft stopped. He declined to identify the people on board.
The water temperature was around 35 degrees F, according to the National Weather Service.
Asked about the chances of survival considering the water temperature and high seas, Mullen said "it comes down to a person's will to survive."
