3 survive plane crash into grove
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Three Redlands residents survived a Thanksgiving Day plane crash into an orange grove, authorities said.
The victims were identified as pilot John Werle, 49; Kris Goodfellow, 38; and her 8-year-old son, Bennett Watson.
The pilot and child were taken to the hospital in critical but stable condition, while Goodfellow suffered only minor injuries, said Bennett’s father, George Watson. The boy’s dog was also on the plane and was uninjured.
Authorities said the single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza went down about a mile from Porterville Municipal Airport about 9:30 a.m. Thursday. The group had been headed to the Fresno area.
George Watson, an editor at the San Bernardino Sun, told the newspaper Werle had been flying too low on the descent and the plane failed to respond when he tried to pull up higher.
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