Members of the team searching for the crash site of a Cessna plane that went missing on January 23, 2023, in the Sierra Madre mountains go deep into the forests of Divilacan, Isabela, amid unpredictable weather. Their mission ended on Thursday, March 9, 2023, in Barangay Ditarum, where the bodies of the pilot and five passengers were found. (PHOTO COURTESY OF PHILIPPINE ARMY 5TH INFANTRY DIVISION)
MANILA, Philippines — The remains of the pilot and five passengers of the ill-fated Cessna plane that crashed in Isabela have been retrieved, the provincial public information announced on Sunday.
“As of 12:54pm today, the bodies of the pilot and passengers have arrived at Divilacan proper,” the Isabela PIO said.
“The Air Force is waiting for a break in the weather to deploy a chopper to transport said bodies to Cauayan,” it added.
In an earlier advisory, the local government said that responding teams began their journey to retrieve the bodies, located in the mountainous and forested area in Divilacan, at around 6:00 a.m.
In a separate statement, Isabela Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) head Constante Forando Jr. said that the bodies are expected to arrive in Cauayan by Monday.
The said aircraft was first reported missing on January 23, with authorities only discovering the wreckage almost two months later on March 9.