SHOW LOW, AZ - A deadly plane crash Saturday left a couple dead and their son and daughter-in-law badly injured.
Rob and Kelly Hatch were flying to Las Vegas early Saturday morning with Rob's parents Gerald and Ruth Hatch.
During take-off something went horribly wrong and the single engine Cessna they were traveling in crashed north of the Show Low airport and burst in to flames.
Gerald and Ruth Hatch did not survive.
Captain Chris Francis said he and his fellow firefighters got the call around 6:30 a.m.
The dispatcher informed them a plane had gone down at the Show Low airport.
"We automatically expect the worst but hope for the best," said Francis by telephone Sunday.
Francis arrived to find a single engine Cessna off the runway and fully engulfed in flames.
Firefighters could also hear the sound of someone screaming for help.
"If we know there's a life to be saved, we're willing to risk our own lives to make that happen," said Francis.
So Francis ran toward the fire and found a total of four people.
Rescuers couldn't do anything for the couple in the front of the plane, Gerald and Ruth Hatch, therefore Francis focused in on 38-year- old Rob Hatch who sat trapped in one of the plane's rear seats.
"He had severe trauma injuries you'd expect with a high impact accident such as an aircraft collision," said Francis.
While other firefighters tended to 36-year-old Kelly Hatch on the outside of the plane, Francis eventually pulled her husband to safety.
Paramedics airlifted the couple to a hospital in Phoenix.
On Sunday, Francis received word that Rob and Kelly Hatch will survive.
Family members posted on Facebook that the couple has a long road ahead, but both Rob and Kelly are expected to survive.
"That's the best news we can get," said Francis. "It's good to know care is being continued and they're on the road to recovery."
"It's definitely a team effort," said Francis. "Our shift worked together and accomplished the job".
Investigators say the Hatch family was headed to Las Vegas when the accident happened.
It is unclear if weather played a role in the accident.
Source: http://www.abc15.com
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