Victims of Crash Praised

Weather may have led to deaths; recovery efforts to resume today

By Sara IsraelsenDeseret Morning News
PROVO — The three Utah County men who died when their plane went down in Utah Lake Thursday night were men of integrity who lived their lives to the fullest, friends and family say.

Keith Johnson, Deseret Morning News
Standing near a recovered piece of plane, Cynthia Clements holds her husband, Eric, at Utah Lake State Park Friday. Thursday's plane crash killed three men, one of whom was a co-worker of Clements. Bad weather has hampered search efforts. Meanwhile, efforts were to resume today to recover the bodies of pilot Blaine Pugmire, 31, Springville; Alpine's Harold "Les" McGuire, 35; and Ray Hooper, 35, Mapleton. And investigators said they will continue to piece the "puzzle" together to determine a cause for the crash that occurred long after the Provo airport control tower had shut down for the night and in an area where radar coverage is poor. The loss of the three men is a huge blow not only to family members but the community in general, said Kyle Nelson, who worked with McGuire and Hooper in their financial consulting company, Producer Revolution, as well as other business ventures, including Engenuity. "If any men were to be part of the news, (these) are men with honor and integrity and a message that could save the world," said Nelson, executive vice president of Engenuity. "The intellectual property they have — their contribution to society can't even be measured." The men worked as financial educators, teaching skills for creating profitable, productive lives, Nelson said. Pugmire, an experienced pilot, had been hired to take the men to and from speaking engagements. The three friends were returning from a conference in St. George Thursday night when their plane went down near the Provo airport. The Utah County Sheriff's Office suspects weather might have been a factor in the crash. "We are taking so many things into factor," Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Dennis Harris said. "It's like putting a puzzle together." Storms blew in across the county Thursday night and Friday, with heavy winds, patchy rain and ominous clouds. Bad weather continued to be an issue in the recovery efforts, as searchers were pulled off the lake several times Friday because of high winds and waves. The effort was suspended Friday evening and was expected to resume this morning around 6 a.m., Harris said, when searchers will begin investigating several points of interest identified Friday.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are also conducting parallel investigations, hoping to find a cause for the crash. Their investigation might take weeks, possibly even months, said William Hughes, an FAA inspector who was on site. The air control tower at Provo Municipal Airport is only manned between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. The last contact with the plane was made by Salt Lake Center Air Control, which received word from Pugmire that the plane was on final descent about 11:30 p.m. Radar coverage in Utah County is limited, as there is no radar system at the Provo facility and the radar in Salt Lake City cannot pick up objects lower than 8,000 feet in the Provo area, according to the FAA. The first indication of trouble came when Pugmire's wife, Nicole, called Provo police around 3:50 a.m. Friday. She was worried because her husband was hours late checking in with her, which he always does, family members said. The call was transferred to the Utah County Sheriff's Office and they tried to find a signal from the plane. When they couldn't find one, they began searching Utah Lake around 6 a.m. with personal watercraft and later with dive teams and sonar-equipped boats. All three men had young families. Pugmire has three children under 4, and his wife is expecting the couple's fourth child next month. Pugmire's family described him as a wonderful father and husband and a stickler for flying perfection. "(Flying) was his passion, this was his love," said Pugmire's uncle, Rex Pugmire. He said his nephew had accumulated more than 2,000 flying hours, had flown commercially and was a corporate pilot. "We know where Blaine's at," said Rex Pugmire, crediting the family's faith for the peace they felt. "It's unsettling to see a plane coming in in pieces, but at the same time we're reassured."

Keith Johnson, Deseret Morning News
Friends and co-workers of the three men who died in Thursday night's plane crash grieve at the Utah Lake State Park marina during search efforts Friday. Underwater sonar equipment helped searchers find crash debris, but stormy weather hindered visibility. The same storm that might have played a role in the crash kept the water churning Friday, making visibility difficult for rescuers from the Utah, Summit and Wasatch County Sheriff's offices as well as individuals from Utah State Parks and Cross International Diving. But with the underwater sonar equipment, officials continued to bring in red- and gold-painted chunks of the Lance Air single-engine turboprop, including the tail piece and a wing. By Friday afternoon, the debris field had grown to nearly a mile and a half in each direction from the center — located about 2 miles west-northwest of the Utah Lake State Park and the Provo Boat Harbor, Harris said. The Red Cross arrived late Friday morning bringing comfort to the family and friends in the form of pizza, burgers and drinks — all donated by from local businesses. "Food is a comfort," said Katrina Pope, director of emergency services for the Provo Red Cross. "(It also shows) the community cares about them."
Contributing: Jeremy Twitchell
E-mail: sisraelsen@desnews.com