North Dakota Lawmaker, His Wife and Their 2 Young Children Killed in Utah Plane Crash

State Senator Doug Larsen, his wife and their two children have been identified as the victims of the crash, according to the Associated Press

North Dakota State Senator Doug Larsen, his wife Amy and their two children were killed in a small aircraft crash on Sunday evening in Utah, the Associated Press reports.

The outlet reports that the crash occurred near Canyonlands Field Airport in Moab, Utah, and that Larsen’s death was confirmed Monday in an email that Republican Senate Majority Leader David Hogue sent to his fellow senators.

In the email, Hogue wrote, "Larsen, his wife Amy, and their two young children died in a plane crash last evening in Utah. They were visiting family in Scottsdale and returning home. They stopped to refuel in Utah.”

Related: Gene Peltola, Husband of Alaska Rep. Mary Peltola, Killed by Plane Crash: ‘He Lightened the Darkest Moments’

In a news release posted to the Grand County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page, Grand County Sheriff Jamison Wiggins confirmed that four people "did not survive the crash" after a "plane [went] into the ground shortly after taking off."

Larsen represented North Dakota's District 34. According to a campaign Facebook account, he joined the National Guard after high school and later re-enlisted before going onto launch several small businesses.

An archived version of his old campaign website describes him as "a husband, father, businessman and veteran of the North Dakota Army National Guard," noting that he and his wife "Amy own[ed] and operate Apex Builders, a local homebuilding company which has built over 10 homes a year for the past five years."

According to the website, Larsen graduated from Minot State University with a teaching degree. He then purchased his first rental property in 2000 and eventually turned that into a small business.

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"He spent the next 12 years fixing, renting, buying, and selling real estate. What started as a retirement goal turned into a small business career. Over the course of a dozen years, Doug & Amy would grow a single rental unit into 49, and later build a hotel," the website says.

A 2020 post on his campaign Facebook page shows him and Amy at a construction site, along with the caption, "My wife Amy & I are a team. Together, we run a business, and together, we build things."

"The most important thing anyone can build is a strong family," the post reads.

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