Four Bodies Recovered in Alaska Helicopter Crash

On Sunday, the recovery team of search and rescue divers retrieved the bodies of three scientists and a helicopter pilot from the sunken wreckage of their helicopter, submerged in a lake on Alaska's North Slope since last week.

The cause of the crash is currently under review by the National Transportation Safety Board.

The North Slope Police Department has released the identities of the casualties from the accident: scientists Ronald Daanen, 51, and Justin Germann, 27, both hailing from Fairbanks; Tori Moore, 26, a resident of South Bend, Indiana; and the helicopter pilot, Bernard “Tony” Higdon, 48, of North Pole, Alaska.

According to a Facebook announcement from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Daanen, Germann, and Moore were part of the Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys and were carrying out field survey work near Utqiagvik at the time of the crash.

In the same post, the Department expressed their sorrow for the loss of their colleagues, pledged to support their team through the difficult period, and committed to collaborate with other agencies to thoroughly investigate the incident.