By Susan Endres and Bridget Cooke

sendres@themonroetimes.com

bcooke@themonroetimes.com

MONROE — Flames engulfed a plane that crashed near the Monroe airport at about noon Sunday, killing the four people on board, including the pilot and three of her relatives, according to the Green County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Mark Rohloff said authorities know the identity of the pilot and three passengers, but their names won’t be released until the coroner gives approval in “a day or so.” He said they had familial connections to Monroe. 

The plane was traveling to Monroe from Kenosha, Rohloff said. 

Authorities did not know the cause of the crash as of Sunday evening.

A witness saw a light aircraft with visible flames while it descended, attempting to crash in a grassy field north of the Monroe Municipal Airport, Rohloff said. Instead, the plane crashed into a wooded area just north of the field, hitting trees, according to a press release from the sheriff’s office. Multiple people called authorities to report seeing a plane lose altitude. 

Monroe Fire Chief Dan Smits said what remained of the aircraft was on fire when Monroe firefighters, who “quickly extinguished” the flames, arrived at the scene.

Smits said the investigation is currently being overseen by the National Transportation Safety Board and could not comment further on the case. Airport Manager Rob Driver said officials from the NTSB arrived at the scene at roughly 5:30 p.m. Sunday.

Monroe Sylvester Road near the airport was closed shortly after authorities arrived around noon, but Rohloff said the closure would be “short-lived” as the road itself wasn’t included in the crash scene. Media was not allowed at the scene “due to inaccessibility and hazards,” the release stated.

Rohloff said the area is currently a no-fly zone and doesn’t know how long that will last. In a press conference following the crash, he said the plane went down just after noon, leaving a “large debris field” that will likely result in a big investigation, spanning over “at least two days.”

Rohloff said family members of the female pilot and three passengers, who were related to each other, contacted the sheriff’s department before officers could notify them because they were tracking the flight and called when they lost the plane’s signal.

“We’re very sorry for the loss,” Rohloff said during his address to the media. “We’ll do our best to assist in the situation.”

Green County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the scene, along with Monroe, Juda, Monticello, Evansville and Brodhead fire departments, Green County EMS and the Federal Aviation Administration. The Green County Coroner was also on scene, Rohloff said. 

The sheriff’s office has started an initial investigation. Rohloff said Sunday afternoon that authorities are conducting a “shoulder-to-shoulder search” for debris and other evidence around the crash site. The search was made difficult by the tall grass, he added.

“We have a lot of manpower,” he said.

The plane crashed on land at the edge of a tree line, where Rohloff noted there are also “rolling hills.” He said witnesses noticed flames coming out of the plane as it was flying before hearing it lose power, some watching as it descended toward the ground. 

The land where the plane crashed, which Rohloff said was a notable distance from Wisconsin 59, is owned by Gerald Geigel. His mother, Marlene, who lives on Wis. 59 near the crash site, said she didn’t see the crash because of the tree line but that Gerald had heard it because he was in the north-most section of the house.

“It’s a sad day for those people and their family,” Marlene said.

Rohloff said authorities believe there were at least three adults on the plane. He said the airport was the pilot’s destination but was unsure of her experience level. He said the last plane crash near the Monroe airport, also fatal, was in 1988. Two people died in that crash.

The NTSB will be conducting further investigation into the crash, along with the sheriff’s office and FAA. Authorities will maintain security around the scene until the investigation is complete, Rohloff said, adding that the investigation timeline is “totally dependent upon the NTSB” and what information officials are looking to find. He said the area’s topography of uneven ground would likely add time to the investigation.