Kyäni Founders Kirk and Jim Hansen Among Those Killed in South Dakota Plane Crash
According to EastIdahoNews.com, the Hansens and six other family members died when their plane went down in a field near Chamberlain, South Dakota, according to relatives. The Hansens were executives with Conrad & Bischoff, Kyäni and KJ’s Super Stores.
Twelve people were on the Pilatus PC-12 that took off shortly before 12:30 p.m. CST from the Chamberlain Municipal Airport on its way to Idaho Falls. The Chamberlain area was under a winter storm warning and the National Weather Service said visibility was a half of a mile at the airport.
The plane crashed shortly after takeoff about a mile from the airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. The pilot and two children were among the nine who perished. The three survivors were hospitalized in Sioux Falls, according to Brule County State Attorney Theresa Maule.
The Brule County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the crash, alongside the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board. The cause of the crash has not been determined.
Flight Aware listed the plane that crashed Saturday as registered to Conrad & Bischoff Inc., a petroleum products distributor based in Idaho Falls, Idaho. The Hansens were executives with Kyani, a direct selling company which markets nutritional, health and wellness products, as well as with petroleum products distributor Conrad & Bischoff and KJ’s Super Stores.
“The men and women of law enforcement, first responders and medical professionals should be commended in their heroic actions to rescue the victims in extreme weather conditions,” Maule said. “Our entire community has been praying for the individuals involved and their families.”
UPDATE:
Travis Garza, President of Kyani, said in a Facebook post that an airplane crash on Saturday afternoon killed company founders Jim and Kirk Hansen.
Garza also stated the wreck also killed Jim Hansen Sr.; Kirk Hansen’s children, Stockton and Logan; his sons-in-law, Kyle Taylor and Tyson Dennert; and Jim Hansen’s son, Jake, and grandson, Houston.
Garza identified the injured as Kirk’s son, Josh, and Jim’s son, Matt, and son-in-law, Thomas Long. All three were hospitalized.
The East Idaho News, citing relatives, reported that the family had been on a hunting trip. Kirk Hansen is a licensed pilot.
