Official: Stevens believed aboard crashed airplane

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A plane believed to be carrying eight people, including former Sen. Ted Stevens and former NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe, crashed in southwest Alaska and rescue crews were trying to reach the wreckage Tuesday morning, authorities said.

Alaska National Guard spokesman Maj. Guy Hayes said there were possible fatalities. Five people were on scene early Tuesday helping the crash victims, he said. It was unclear how they reached the site.

A U.S. government official told The Associated Press that Alaska authorities have been told that Stevens, a former longtime Republican senator, is among several passengers on the plane. The official, who spoke on grounds of anonymity, says Stevens’ condition is unknown.

The federal official declined to be publicly identified because the crash response and investigation are under way.