Jun 30, 2008 1:03 pm US/Pacific
CoCo Candidate, BART Officer Killed In Plane Crash
NORTH LAS VEGAS (CBS 5 / AP / BCN) ―
A Contra Costa County supervisor candidate and a Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer were two of four people killed when a single-engine plane headed for a Contra Costa County airport crashed just outside Las Vegas, authorities said Sunday.
Contra Costa County District 5 supervisor candidate Erik Nunn, 37, was piloting the plane when it crashed and exploded into flames after apparently striking power lines in a forested area about 40 miles northwest of the Las Vegas Strip.
Nunn and his wife Tanya were killed, along with BART police officer Craig Wilson, 36, and his wife Michele, 37.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said all four were passengers in the single-engine plane that went down about 2:45 p.m.Saturday.
The couples were neighbors and were celebrating their wedding anniversaries in Las Vegas, according to BART spokesman Linton Johnson.
A preliminary investigation showed the Piper Cherokee plane was en route from the North Las Vegas airport to Byron Airport in unincorporated Contra Costa County when it crashed at the 7,000-foot level of Mt. Charleston's east side, Gregor said.
The plane burst into flames and touched off a wildfire near the Echo Subdivision of the mountain resort area.
Fire officials said the fire quickly climbed the steep and parched terrain of the Spring Mountain Recreation Area and came within a half-mile of homes. Nearly 40 homes were evacuated due to the 12-acre fire, said Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman Kirsten Cannon.
The crash remained under investigation by the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board.
Individuals interested in making a donation to the children of the crash victims should send payments to:
Nunn Children Trust
Bank of the West
2195 Main St
Oakley, 94561925-625-2211
or
Wilson Children Trust
Bank of the West
2195 Main St
Oakley, 94561925-625-2211
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.)
