Bodies Of Retired Schoolteachers Debra Velleman Of Wisconsin, Sue Borries Of Illinois Found Nearly A Month After Plane Crash In Panama
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The bodies of two retired schoolteachers from Wisconsin and downstate Illinois have been recovered, nearly a month after they went missing following a plane crash in Panama.
The plane went down in the water on Monday, Jan. 3 while flying from Isla Contadora to Punta Chame on the Panamanian mainland, CBS 58 Milwaukee reported.
Four people and a pilot were on the plane at the time. They included Anthony and Debra Velleman of Waukesha, Wisconsin near Milwaukee; Sue Borries of downstate Teutopolis, Illinois; and Melisa Zachrich – only described by CBS 58 as being from the U.S. – along with a Canadian pilot.
Anthony Velleman, Zachrich, and the pilot were rescued and survived. But Borries and Debra Velleman went missing.
Borries, 57, and Debra Velleman, 70, were both former public school teachers. They became fast friends as expats spending their winters in Panama.
Late Tuesday, their families issued a statement announcing the women's bodies have been found. The family thanked the nonprofit Bruce Legacy for using its expertise and equipment to find the missing plane and complete the recovery of the bodies Tuesday morning.
Last month, the Vellemans' son, Jake Velleman, said authorities in Panama had been searching from the air and on the ground. But he said the families had received little to no help from the U.S. government.
Velleman's dad was flown back to Wisconsin, where he has undergone several surgeries.
Jake said the small plane's engine failed to cause the crash.
