He switched flights, then watched friends survive Kenmore Air crash near Sucia Island

Cody Gibson had long planned to bring his friends to the San Juan Islands for a summer fishing trip. The group intended to fly together Thursday afternoon from Seattle to Roche Harbor, where they would spend the weekend fishing for king salmon, crabbing and relaxing. But one day before the trip, Gibson switched to an earlier Kenmore Air departure so he could meet with contractors at his family’s home near Roche Harbor. RELATED | Kenmore Air seaplane crashes near Sucia Island; all 11 aboard rescued “I was supposed to be on that flight, which is pretty, pretty crazy,” Gibson said. His friends remained booked on Kenmore Air Flight 140, which left Lake Union for Roche Harbor Thursday afternoon. Gibson headed to the dock to meet them. “I was waiting down at the dock for them,” he said. “And like 10 minutes went by, we didn’t hear anything, and then it started really raining and thunder and other things.” Gibson walked toward the nearby Madrona Bar and Grill to get out of the weather. Then his phone rang. “I got a random call from a number, and it was my friend who used someone else’s phone and said that, you know, plane crashed Sucia, it’s on fire, all that stuff,” Gibson recalled. Kenmore Air said Flight 140, a de Havilland DHC-3 Otter carrying 10 passengers and one pilot, was involved in an accident in Shallow Bay near Sucia Island at approximately 5:15 p.m. Everyone aboard survived. The Coast Guard said numerous boaters responded after an urgent broadcast was issued to mariners in the area. Videos recorded from nearby boats show the floatplane banking low above the water before striking the surface, briefly rising again and hitting the rocky shoreline. Smoke rose from the aircraft as people escaped, and flames eventually engulfed much of the plane. PHOTOS: 11 survive fiery seaplane crash near Sucia Island Gibson said his friends lost their phones, luggage and other belongings in the water. Their girlfriends drove to Bellingham to meet them at the hospital. “They’re doing okay,” Gibson said. “One of my friends had a pretty bad laceration on his groin from the seatbelt, almost hit an artery, but didn’t. And my other friend was relatively okay, but concussions a little bit.” Gibson said his friends described the weather as arriving suddenly as the plane approached the islands. From the ground, he watched conditions change within minutes. “The weather was pretty weird,” Gibson said. “Within the span of like two or three minutes, the weather completely shifted, and it just went to a torrential rainstorm. I’ve never seen it that bad up here.” He said the intense rain, thunder and lightning lasted approximately 15 minutes before quickly moving on. Longtime islander Sally Tarte-Cramer witnessed the same abrupt change while preparing to have guests over for dinner. She said there had been blue sky in one direction when she looked toward Henry Island and saw the storm approaching. “I say to my sister, ‘Oh, wow! Look at that storm coming! Look at the rain coming in,’” Tarte-Cramer recalled. At about 5:09 p.m., she said, wind and heavy rain swept into the area, accompanied by thunder and unusually frequent lightning. A pilot visiting her home pointed out what he described as downdraft activity associated with the storm. The broader regional weather pattern had been on forecasters’ radar. In a discussion issued at 3:09 p.m. Thursday, the National Weather Service’s Seattle office said scattered thunderstorms were moving north-northwest over parts of the Washington coast and coastal waters. Forecasters warned that storms could bring gusty winds, lightning, reduced visibility and brief heavy downpours. Kenmore Air said Friday that available radar information showed a weather system in the area and that the pilot adjusted the flight path in response. The airline stressed that any determination about whether weather or another factor contributed to the accident will be made by the National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation. Gibson said he did not want to second-guess the pilot. He has flown with Kenmore Air numerous times and said he is not qualified to judge the decisions made inside the cockpit. “I’m no pilot, so I can’t really comment on if he did the right thing or the wrong thing,” Gibson said. “I’d like to learn more about how that decision process was being made.” For people living in the San Juan Islands, Kenmore Air is more than a summer attraction. Its flights provide a regular transportation link between the islands, Seattle and other communities. “It is a lifeline,” Tarte-Cramer said. “They’re neighbors. They’re friends.” Kenmore Air canceled all scheduled flights Friday to support the passengers, pilot, families and employees. In a noon update, the airline said the pilot had been released from the hospital. On Friday, Kenmore Air announced it will resume flight operations Saturday. In a statement, the airline said: This decision follows our internal review and coordination with the appropriate authorities. Safety remains our highest priority, and we continue to cooperate fully with the NTSB's investigation into Thursday's incident. Any conclusions about contributing factors will come from the NTSB. Our thoughts remain with those involved and their families, and we continue to wish everyone a full recovery. Three passengers remained hospitalized —two at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and one at PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham. The crash also left an unexpected vacancy at Roche Harbor Resort. A clerk told KOMO News that one room expected to be occupied Thursday night by guests attending a weekend wedding remained empty. The weekend’s scheduled weddings, however, were still moving forward. For Gibson, the celebrations and fishing trip now carry a much different meaning. A flight change made only one day earlier placed him on the dock instead of inside the aircraft. “I was supposed to be on that flight,” he said. “Which is pretty, pretty crazy.”