Small plane crashed in gulf of Mexico, bodies of woman and child found 

Rescue teams found the body of a woman and a child, after a small plane crashed into the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday evening, authorities said. At least one more person is missing. 

The single-engine Piper PA-28 departed Venice Municipal Airport in Florida at around 7:30 p.m. local time, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The plane crashed into the Gulf of Mexico around 2.5 miles west of the Venice Fishing pier. 

After the airplane didn’t reach its final destination, the FAA called the Venice Police Department (VPD), who then organized a search for the missing plane.

On Sunday at around 2:00 p.m. local time, the VPD confirmed that they found parts of the plane’s wreckage about ⅓ of a mile into the water, west of Venice Municipal Airport. The plane was found a few hours later. 

Around the same time, recreational boaters found the body of a woman floating in the water about 2.5 miles west of Venice Beach, according to the City of Venice.  

Later on Sunday afternoon, divers from the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office located the body of a child in the plane’s passenger area. 

Authorities believe that a male pilot or passenger was also on the flight. However, his body has been found yet. Search efforts will continue on Monday. 

 It is unclear what led to the crash. An investigation will be conducted by several agencies to determine the cause. 

This is a developing story.