The Ypsilanti Courier
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Ypsilanti firefighter dies in plane crash
PUBLISHED: June 5, 2007
Ypsilanti firefighter Richard LaPensee was among six people believed killed in the crash of a University of Michigan Survival Flight crash the U. S. Coast Guard called "non-survivable."
LaPensee was acting in his capacity as a transplant donation specialist on the organ procurement flight, which went down shortly after takeoff from General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, Wis. The plane went down in Lake Michigan.
U. S. Coast Guard Capt. Bruce Jones, speaking in an early morning press conference in Milwaukee, said search and rescue crews had retrieved plane debris and human remains from the crash site.
"We're in shock here," said Lt. Michael Wells of the Ypsilanti Fire Department, where LaPensee had been a firefighter for 14 years. " Rick was a great guy and a good friend."
Wells said LaPensee, who lived in Belleville leaves behind a wife and two teenage sons.
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