The National Transportation Safety Board said Friday it is investigating a private turboprop crash at the top of Emerald Mountain near the Steamboat Springs airport, and the Routt County sheriff said four bodies had been recovered, with no survivors.
The NTSB said an Epic Aircraft E1000, marketed as a six-seat, single-engine turboprop, crashed in the area. The sheriff’s office said in a statement first reported in the Steamboat Pilot that the crash occurred on the approach to Bob Adams Airport, at the top of the mountain.
The crash happened about midnight on Thursday, the sheriff’s office later told the Sun.
The Routt County Coroner’s office on Friday confirmed the crash and the investigation of four deaths. The office was working on notifications to family members and would not yet identify the victims.
The NTSB said Friday an “investigator is en route to the scene and is expected to arrive by this afternoon. Once on site, the investigator will begin the process of documenting the scene and examining the aircraft. The aircraft will then be recovered to a secure facility for further evaluation.”
The NTSB release said the agency investigates in a few primary areas: the pilot’s actions and flight experience, the flight track, weather, aircraft performance and maintenance, and communications with air traffic control.
This is a developing story and will be updated with new information.