Two Mexican lawmakers and two mayors-elect died after a small plane crashed on Friday in Oaxaca state, officials said on Friday.
Lawmakers Guillermo Zavaleta Rojas, Juan Huerta Moreno died when their small plane crashed near Huatulco, a resort in the Mexican Pacific coast. Among them the elected mayor of Santa Catarina Juquila, Joaquin Cortes, his Huatulco counterpart Lorenzo Lavariega, an aide and the pilot were killed too.
Both lawmakers were members of the ruling National Action Party. Zavaleta was expected to be named as part of the new Oaxaca governor’s administration.
Preliminary reports indicate that the Cessna plane lost contact with the control tower of the Huatulco airport in the middle of severe turbulence.
The plane departed from the Toluca airport in the state of Mexico at 8:30 a.m. local time. It crashed around 11:00 a.m. between Santa Maria Huatulco and Bahias de Huatulco where they were to attend a training course for lawmakers.
