7-year-old boy among 5 dead in South Carolina plane crash

A 7-year-old boy and his mother were among five people killed when a small plane crashed in South Carolina on Sunday, officials said. 

The single-engine Piper PA-32 went down near North Myrtle Beach’s Barefoot Resort, authorities said. Police said the plane was engulfed in flames and that there was a “pretty significant debris field.”

Four of the five victims died at the scene of multiple traumatic and thermal injuries, Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard said Wednesday. They were all from East Orange, New Jersey. 

The pilot, 66-year-old Dr. Joseph Farnese, was among the dead, Willard said. The coroner identified the 7-year-old victim as Sean Gardner. His mother, 32-year-old Tanique Cheu, was also killed in the crash, along with passenger Odaycia Edwards, 17.

The teen’s mother, 42-year-old Suzette Coleman-Edwards, was rushed to the hospital for treatment after the crash, officials said. She died a short time later. 

The Federal Aviation Administration initially said four people were on the plane, but later said five people were on board when it went down.

The plane crashed in a wooded area near the roadway around 11 a.m. Sunday.

After the crash, officials said the area would be shut down for about two days as the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board investigated.