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Indiana couple dies in Ohio plane crash

BEVERLY, Ohio (WLFI) – Authorities say two people from Logansport, Indiana, were killed when a small plane crashed into a retention pond in southeastern Ohio.

Lt. Richard Chesar with Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Marietta Post said pilot 63-year-old Umamaheswara Kalapatapu and his wife 61-year-old Sitha-Gita Kalapatapu died in the crash.

The Kalapatapus are psychiatrists who own Raj Clinics. There are locations in Lafayette, Logansport, Kokomo, Fort Wayne and Indianapolis. News 18 confirmed from employees the clinics are closed indefinitely.

The Kalapatapus’ remains were recovered Saturday afternoon from the Ohio crash site, near the Washington County village of Beverly. That’s about 75 miles southeast of Columbus.

Authorities believe the crash occurred Saturday morning, as the private plane left Cass County, Indiana, but lost contact after 10:30 a.m. The plane was reported missing after noon.

It disappeared from radar and the wreckage was found in a retention pond. The plane was supposedly headed toward Washington, D.C. Lt. Chesar said the plane was in the water for about seven hours.

“There is a retention pond. It’s nice size and it landed almost in the middle of it,” he said. “Beverly Volunteer Fire Department and Little Hocking Fire Department were able to use scuba divers to retrieve the plane and the persons from the plane.”

There is not word on the cause of the crash.

The crash is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board.

Patients of Raj Clinics are being advised to contact their primary care physicians to get refills on any medication. Patients can pick up their medication list from the clinics.

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