At Least 1 Believed Dead, 6 Onboard In HV Plane Crash: Officials

COPAKE, NY — At least one person is believed dead — and six were onboard — after a plane crashed Saturday in the Copake area, officials said.

According to representatives of the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, the plane crashed in Copake near Two Town Road at about 12:04 p.m. At least one person is believed to have died in the crash, with the total number of fatalities not yet known, officials said.

A statement from the FAA said that a Mitsubishi MU-2B crashed in a field near Copake at around 12:15 p.m. on Saturday. The aircraft was headed to Columbia County Airport in Hudson. Six people were on board, the FAA said.

Columbia County Undersheriff Jacqueline Salvatore updated the press and said the plane crashed in the middle of a "pretty muddy" field, making access difficult. The FAA was at the scene with the National Transportation Safety Board en route; the investigation is expected to take at least a few days, she said.

Officials told Patch that the conditions were overcast at the time, and there had been snow earlier in the morning.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. The NSTB will lead the investigation and provide any updates, the FAA said. The NTSB did not immediately respond to a request for comment.