Photo: Darrian Trayno/Getty Images
five minors left orphans due to an air tragedy are sheltered by an entire community.
Friends of Manuel Vargas-Regalado and Abigail Téllez-Vargas, who died early Saturday morning, July 8, in the crash of a commercial plane at the French Valley Airport, in Murrieta, launched a fundraiser for the five minors.
The Hispanic couple were among the victims of the accident of the Cessna C550 that crashed and caught fire while trying to land at the air terminal.
Photo: AFP/Getty Images
Monique Bettencourt, a resident of Fallbrook, California, created a GoFundMe page to request resources that will be will allocate for the five children, between the ages of 1 and 14, of Manuel and Abigail.
The children of the Regalado couple were identified as Caleb, 14; Alexandria, 11 years old; Manny, 8 years old; Alberto, 3 years old, and Avi, 1 year old.
The campaign had raised, until this Wednesday, July 12, just over $21,000 dollars.
Bettencourt said that the resources will be delivered directly to Abigail’s sister, Alejandra Treviño, who will take custody of her five nephews.
“On Saturday, July 8, 2023, the children woke up to find their entire world had been taken from them. Our community was met with a very devastating tragedy,” Bettencourt said on the GoFundMe page.
“These children not only lost one of their parents, but both, which breaks my heart. No child should have to face this kind of tragedy,” added the campaign organizer.
The Riverside County Coroner’s Office reported that the people who died in the aircraft crash were Manuel Vargas-Regalado, 32 (Temecula); Abigail Tellez-Vargas, 33 years old (Murrieta); Lindsey Gleiche, 31 (Huntington Beach); Riese Lenders, 25 (Rancho Palos Verdes), and Alma Razick, 51 (Temecula).
Authorities said the crash occurred during the second of attempts to land in foggy conditions just before dawn.
Although Manuel Vargas was a veteran pilot, he was not part of the crew of the crashed aircraft.
The private plane, which seats 13 people, crashed about 500 feet from the intended landing strip.said National Transportation Safety Board investigator Elliott Simpson.
Due to the accident, the aircraft suffered a fire, which consumed most of the plane.
“The pilot informed air traffic control that he was going to make a missed approach, which usually happens when the pilot cannot see the runway,” the National Board representative stated during a press conference.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported that the Cessna C550 took off from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas at approximately 3:15 a.m. Saturday for French Valley Airport in Murrieta, where it crashed at approximately 4:15 a.m..
It was said that the aircraft was not scheduled to carry out the flight that morning, but at the last moment it was cleared to fly.
The Murrieta Air Terminal, owned by Riverside County, does not have a tower. Pilots report to air traffic controllers at another airport. They can use instruments during approach maneuvers, but to land they need to be able to see the runway.
Photo: AFP/Getty Images
The tragedy in which the Hispanic couple died it was the second accident to occur at French Valley Airport within days of each other. On July 4, a pilot was killed and three people injured when a single-engine Cessna 172 crashed near the air terminal.
The two plane crashes remain under investigation by the authorities.
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