WDSU-TV Sports Reporter Carley McCord Among Five Killed In Louisiana Plane Crash

Anita Bennett

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New Orleans sports reporter Carley McCord was one of five people killed when a small plane crashed Saturday near Lafayette Regional Airport in Lafayette, Louisiana.

McCord’s husband, Steven Ensminger Jr., confirmed her death to the Associated Press, and said the plane was en route to the Peach Bowl playoff game in Atlanta between LSU and Oklahoma.

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The two-engine Piper Cheyenne crashed in the parking lot of a post office around 9:20 a.m., shortly after taking off.

According to local publication, the Acadiana Advocate, the 51-year-old pilot was also killed. The other people who died included an adult male, an adult female and her teenage son. A 37-year-old man on the plane was hospitalized in critical condition. Three people on the ground were also hurt.

McCord, 30, was the daughter-in-law of LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger. She worked as a sports reporter at New Orleans NBC affiliate WDSU-TV.

“It is with broken hearts that we share that WDSU lost a beloved member of our team today. Our hearts are with the McCord and Ensminger families at this time,” the station tweeted Saturday.

McCord was born and raised in Baton Rouge. She graduated from both Northwestern State University and Louisiana State University; and got her first broadcast job in Ohio as an in-house reporter for the Cleveland Browns.

Among the other positions she held was as a freelance sideline reporter for ESPN3. She also served as an in-game host for the New Orleans Pelicans and the New Orleans Saints.

“Carley was a valued member of both our New Orleans Saints and New Orleans Pelicans family as an in-game host and her infectious personality and knowledge of both teams entertained our fans,” the Pelicans said in a statement on the team’s website. “Not only was Carley an excellent representative of the Saints and Pelicans organizations, she was also a highly-respected member of the media covering sports.”

McCord is the second New Orleans journalist to die in a plane crash this year. On August 16, longtime WVUE anchor and reporter Nancy Parker, 53, was killed while shooting a story in a stunt plane that crashed. Flight instructor and stunt pilot Franklin Augustus, 69, also died.

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