FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Police have recovered the bodies of two Delray Beach men who died in a helicopter crash in a remote area west of Palm Beach Gardens.
The men have been identified as Richard Preiser, 71, and Thomas Stout, 65.
A pilot in a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office helicopter found the wreckage at 9 p.m. Friday in the J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area. The helicopter had last been seen on radar four and a half hours earlier.
The helicopter was found “in an area that is difficult to get to without specialized vehicles,” the Sheriff’s Office said. The Corbett area is a wildlife preserve that includes cypress wetlands and the Great Florida Birding Trail.
Palm Beach County fire personnel, detectives and medical examiners were on the scene to investigate. They plan to turn over the site to the National Transportation Safety Board for further analysis.
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