Camas man dies in plane crash

A local pilot and a student pilot have been found dead after a plane crash in an area near Goble, Ore.

The bodies of Todd Norrish, 47, of Camas, and Jimmy Kravets, 17, of Vancouver, were found by deputies with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office Thursday, at 3:38 a.m. The crash occurred Wednesday evening.

Norrish and Kravets had been flying in a Cessna aircraft. The Sheriff’s Office received notification through Columbia 911 that a cell phone associated with a missing pilot was “pinging” in the area between Deer Island and Goble just before midnight.

The crash scene is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board, with the assistance of the Sheriff’s Office.

Columbia 911 dispatchers, along with Columbia River Fire and Rescue personnel, members of the Oregon State Police, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Coast Guard, assisted with the search and rescue effort.

“Clark County sent a marine patrol unit specially equipped for thermal imaging, and the Coast Guard was also en route with thermal imaging equipment when we located the downed aircraft,” Columbia County Sheriff Jeff Dickerson said.

Norris, owner of Cold Creek Construction Consulting, had been an assistant coach for the Washington Soccer Academy.

This article will be updated, as additional information becomes available.