Even as the wreckage of a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan that crashed on Thursday, killing all 10 on board, drifts on a Bering Sea ice floe, authorities said they had recovered and identified the bodies of all the victims on Saturday.
Time was of the essence as the ice floe, about 54 km out to sea near Nome, Alaska, was made of slushy ice and the weather was predicted to turn foul on Sunday, whipping up snow and 45 mph winds, officials said.
"All ten individuals aboard the Bering Air plane have been officially brought home," the Nome Volunteer Fire Department said in a Facebook post on Saturday night.
Recovery of the victims from the small commuter aircraft was made by a joint effort of the US Coast Guard, US Air Force and other agencies.
Meanwhile, a crew of nine investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, on Saturday to find out why it crashed.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said the Cessna carrying nine passengers and one pilot was lost from radar contact about 3:30pm local time on Thursday over the Bering Sea as it headed from Unalakleet, Alaska, to an airfield in Nome, about 100 miles south of the Arctic Circle.
The Coast Guard found the wreckage late on Friday on an ice floe drifting about 5 miles a day at sea, officials said.
"The priority is victim recovery. Then we will recover the wreckage," Homendy said at a press conference earlier on Saturday.
Officials had said they would use Black Hawk helicopters to try to lift the wreckage off the ice.
She also expressed her "deepest condolences" to the victims' families and friends.
"Please know that we will work diligently to determine how this happened," she said, adding, "It must be extremely heartbreaking for the families."
On Friday, the Coast Guard put two divers in the water and they were able to see into the aircraft, but it was largely inaccessible due to the extent of the damage.
In a press statement to the media, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium said two of the passengers worked for the agency in utility operations and had traveled to Unalakleet to service part of the community’s water plant.
The agency's interim president and CEO, Natasha Singh, said the employees were "passionate about the work they did, cared deeply for the communities they served, and made a lasting impact on rural communities across our state."
Neither the ANTHC nor Singh could immediately be reached by Reuters for additional comment.
Cessna 208B Grand Caravan：这是一种小型飞机。
Bering Sea：白令海，位于阿拉斯加和俄罗斯之间。
Ice floe：浮冰，指的是漂浮在水面上的大片冰块。
NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board)：美国国家运输安全委员会，负责调查交通事故。
Coast Guard：海岸警卫队，负责海上救援工作。
Wreckage：残骸，指飞机或车辆等事故后散落的破碎部分。
飞机坠毁与救援：
一架Cessna 208B Grand Caravan飞机于星期四在阿拉斯加的白令海上空失事，导致机上10人全部遇难。周六，所有遇难者的遗体被找回并确认身份。
这架飞机从Unalakleet（阿拉斯加的一座小镇）飞往Nome，途中失去雷达信号。飞机坠毁的地点在离海岸约54公里的浮冰上。
恶劣天气：
救援工作面临严峻的天气挑战。由于浮冰非常不稳定，且天气预报显示会出现暴风雪和强风，抢救工作时间紧迫。
救援工作：
救援工作由美国海岸警卫队、空军和其他机构联合进行，目标是首先回收遇难者的遗体，然后再回收飞机残骸。
周五，海岸警卫队派遣潜水员潜水，试图接近飞机残骸，但由于损坏严重，飞机内部几乎无法接近。
调查：
美国国家运输安全委员会（NTSB）派遣了9名调查员前往阿拉斯加，调查飞机坠毁的原因。
NTSB主席Jennifer Homendy表示，调查团队将会尽力查明事故原因，并向遇难者家属表示最深切的慰问。
受害者背景：
其中两名乘客为阿拉斯加本土部落健康联合会的员工，负责提供水厂服务。
Time was of the essence：时间至关重要，强调时间紧迫。
Made of slushy ice：由湿滑的冰组成，形容浮冰的性质，意味着冰层不稳定。
Whipping up snow and 45 mph winds：指风速高达45英里每小时，天气恶劣。
Brought home：指所有遇难者的遗体已被回收，并且得到了确认。
Priority：优先事项，指救援工作中的首要任务。
Condolences：哀悼，对逝者表示同情和慰问。
Impact on rural communities：指这些受害者对农村社区的影响，特别是在阿拉斯加这样的偏远地区。