The site of an accident where a light plane crashed into the sea at the Isla Bonita Area, in Roatán, Honduras. Photograph: HO/AFP/Getty Images

Five foreign tourists killed in Honduras plane crash

A private plane crashed into the sea shortly after taking off from the island of Roatán, near the Atlantic coast of Honduras and killed five foreign tourists on Saturday. The plane was headed to the tourist port city of Trujillo, an island frequented by tourists from the US, Canada, and Europe.

According to Jose Domingo Meza, the armed forces spokesman, four of the victims were from the United States and one of them had yet to be determined. The US State Department also confirmed the deaths of four US citizens and Global Affairs Canada confirmed that a Canadian also had died.

Patrick Forseth is a Canadian national who developed tourism projects in the Trujillo Bay area. Honduran authorities identified him as the pilot of Piper Cherokee Six. Both of Forseth parents were heartbroken. Jenna Forseth, Patrick’s sister said that her brother was an experienced pilot who loves what he did.

The authorities said they could not confirm the cause of the crash. However, according to a report by the local independent newspaper in Honduras, La Prensa, the single-engine plane crashed off the coast of Roatán. La Prensa reported the plane fell after taking off from the Roatán Airport.