4 Mid-South dentists among 6 people killed in plane crash
OXFORD, MS (WMC) - A small plane headed to Oxford, Mississippi crashed in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, on Sunday morning, killing all six people on board.
Northport Fire Chief Bart Marshal said a small fire was extinguished, but there were no survivors.
WMC Action News 5 confirmed Dr. Jason Farese and his wife, Dr. Lea Farese, both dentists in Oxford, MS, were killed in the crash. The couple has three children who were not on the plane. They were staying with friends, according to Dr. Farese's uncle, Steve Farese, who is a defense attorney in Memphis.
According to Farese Family Dental's website, Jason and Lea Farese both practiced dentistry together in Oxford since 2004. Jason is a native to Ashland, MS, while Lea was raised in Pearl.
Mayor Bill Luckett, of Clarksdale, Miss., confirms Dr. Austin Poole and his wife, Angie, were also killed. Dr. Poole operated a dental practice in Clarksdale. He and his wife leave behind five children.
Mayor Luckett's son is one of Jason Farese's cousins.
"I've known him since he was born," Mayor Bill Luckett said. "He was a red-headed freckle-face kid who was mischievous and fun."
Luckett also knew Austin and Angie Poole, not only from their thriving Clarksdale business, but also because they all liked to hunt.
"They love life. They were very energetic, outgoing, good people," Luckett recalled.
Our sister station, WBRC, in Birmingham, confirmed Dr. Michael Perry and his wife, Kim, were also killed. They leave behind three children. Dr. Perry has five dental practices located in Memphis, Collierville, Bartlett, Oxford, and Southaven.
"I cried. I don't know what to say," said Kevin Hooper, Dr. Perry's friend of 12 years. "Michael was the most energetic, the most fun. He always came into the room and had a smile on his face."
The airplane, a Piper Navajo, departed Kissimmee, FL and filed an IFR flight plan for 12,000 feet, typical for this type of aircraft.
At some point around 11 a.m., the airplane began having problems. The pilot was on final descent for Runway 30 in Tuscaloosa when the crash happened; they were about 1,000 feet short of that runway.
An NTSB investigator will conduct the investigation into what caused the plane to crash by documenting the scene, examining the wreckage, and requesting air traffic control communications and radar data.
Jason Farese's father, John, survived a plane crash in 2011 because he had a parachute on board. His plane dropped out of the sky 50 seconds into the flight.
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