Grandmother, daughters and grandson were among 6 victims in Wisconsin Dells plane crash

A grandmother, two of her adult daughters and her 13-year-old grandson were flying home from a surprise visit to a high school volleyball game Tuesday night when their small plane crashed in Wisconsin, family members said Thursday.

Mary Brion, 67, her daughters Kayla Turpin, 39, and Amanda Haremza, 45, and grandson Rylan Haremza were among six people killed in the small plane crash near Wisconsin Dells. The plane went down in a wooded area near Mirror Lake State Park, not far from the popular tourist destination, after flying in a thunderstorm. No one on the ground was hurt.

The other two victims were Tyler Harvey, 36, of Cadott, and Ron Riek, of Woodville, the experienced pilot and businessperson who owned the plane. The Sauk County Sheriff's Office identified all six Thursday. All lived in Wisconsin.

David Brion said he and his wife went to every match their daughters played. Mary Brion "just loved to go watch the grandchildren," he said. Their granddaughters live five hours away by car in Salem, so they couldn't watch them play often. This time they could go by plane through a pilot friend of their son-in-law, Brion said.

"We never had much money, she just wanted to find her joy," said Brion, of Nelson. "This trip they were really excited about."

Rylan was a "wonderful little kid" who loved hunting, fishing, football and wrestling, Brion said.

Brion said his wife called before takeoff to tell him there was a storm and they might have to go around it.

"I don't know if they did or not," he said.

The six-seat, single-engine Piper PA-46 Malibu was flying from Kenosha to Menomonie. The National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation, said the pilot told an air traffic controller about icing on the wings at 24,000 feet and asked to descend. Even a thin layer of ice can make it difficult for a plane to remain airborne. Air traffic control approved the descent, and the plane began a right descending turn that increased sharply in rate until communications and data tracking were lost.

Shortly after the crash, a controller can be heard on a recording posted by LiveATC.net warning another pilot headed into the area about a "heavy and extreme cell" near the Dells as he directed that pilot to descend to 14,000 feet.

"Some severe icing came out of nowhere from an aircraft. If you pick any of that up, let me know," the controller said.

NTSB investigators found most of the wreckage Wednesday and documented the cabin, cockpit, engines and propellers at the main crash site. With help from volunteers, they plan to search Friday for additional pieces that may have been scattered through the woods. The NTSB has said it will likely release a preliminary report within 30 days.

Menomonie Airport Commission Chairman Daniel Johnson said "the aircraft has a reputation of not doing well in thunderstorms." The NTSB did a safety study on seven Piper crashes between 1989 and 1991.

Riek carried an airline transport pilot rating on his license, according to Federal Aviation Administration records, which indicates he had at least 1,500 hours of flying experience and the skills needed to be an airline captain. Johnson, who had known Riek for decades, told The Associated Press that Riek had a lot of experience relying on instruments when flying. Johnson called him "a popular and important member of our small aviation community."

Riek built Woodville Warehousing and Distributing, a logistics company, after several years as a trucker. His profile on the company website talks about his love of flying and how he used his plane to visit customers.

In Woodville, Erin McMahon, who works at Woodville Cafe, said Riek would "go far and beyond for his workers." Several people who spoke with WCCO said he was an experienced pilot with safety always top of mind.

Harvey was a certified flight instructor who worked for Gibson Aviation Services, Johnson said. Riek likely just invited him along on the flight, Johnson said.

The crash hits the aviation community around Menomonie hard. Four people died in a different plane crash last year, and Riek helped organize a fundraiser afterward for the three young children of one couple who died. CBS Chicago reported in April 2025 that four people from Menomonie were killed when their small plane hit power lines and crashed in central Illinois.

"This is two fatal crashes in 18 months. We've lost a lot of friends," Johnson said. "This creates a hole in the aviation community."