Ben Gabel, of Denham Springs, is a former surveyor, and navigated to the scene from the official NTSB report, which includes the latitude and longitude. According to the bands autobiography, Zunk Buker, Aerosmiths chief of flight operations manager, was inspecting the plane and the crew before they pulled the trigger. ", "He came home covered in blood," said his wife, Lola. ", He reached up and pealed the split fuselage back and, with a flashlight, peered into the dark, jumbled mess of bodies. Lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and singer Cassie Gaines were all killed in the crash, and the . He suffered a heart attack while on break from tour. All of the seats were ripped from the frame of the plane, landing in the front section of the crash. Allen Collins suffered two cracked vertebrae in his neck, and both Collins and Leon Wilkeson nearly had arms amputated as a result of crash injuries. All he could think was that they must be from a recent a jailbreak," she said. At the time of her death, she was 29 years old. A little after an hour of trudging through a creek and at one point burrowing underneath a barbed wire fence they found themselves staring at a small, dim light in the distance. Birthday: January 9, 1948. Natural causes were to blame. Both of which helped the album climb to the No. 10 Details About the Fatal Plane Crash that Was the Death of Lynyrd The band has sold an estimated 35 million records. I knew I could take photographs if I could get there. In the beginning, the singer was reluctant to board the aircraft and had already bought another commercial flight ticket. All of the seats were ripped from the frame of the plane, landing in the front section of the crash. Willing to lend a hand and stick by his bandmates, he was hard to beat when standing by your side. I couldn't stand it. Marc Frank recalled hearing both engines on the plane then within a matter of minutes, just air passing over the cabin. Contributing to the fuel exhaustion were inadequate flight planning and an engine malfunction of undetermined nature in the right engine which resulted in higher-than-normal fuel consumption." Lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and singer Cassie Gaines were all killed in the crash, and the band stopped performing and recording. 137.184.228.194 10 Details About the Fatal Plane Crash that Was the Death of Lynyrd Its many hit songs include "Freebird," "Sweet Home Alabama," "Gimme Three Steps" and "Simple Man.". He was a walking treasure trove of names, facts and figures. But a message on the group's official Web site said the summer tour will resume on Aug. 7, in Spokane, Wash. Wilkeson suffered severe internal injuries, including a punctured lung, and had most of his teeth knocked out. Steve Gaines was killed instantly upon impact and his sister Cassie Gaines perished as well. The Truth Behind Ronnie Van Zant's LAST Ride - Society Of Rock Four of the passengers were killed including bandleader and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, Cassie Gaines and assistant tour manager Dean Kilpatrick. The pilot and co-pilot also died; 20 others aboard lived. Lynyrd Skynyrd is a staple on rock, classic rock, and southern radio stations. It would also be the first album that guitarist Steve Gaines would be the sole guitar player on. Gene Odom, Lynyrd Skynyrds bodyguard, recalls: They took my watch, my wallet, my ring, and my money as I lay bleeding on the ground. In 1975, his sister, Cassie, whose group had been hired to sing back. He had been impaled by a part of the fuselage and it pushed through his body and projected out of his back. Mike Rounsaville also arrived in the jeep with Dr. Lewis. "I saw the blond hair," he said. It felt like being hit with baseball bats in a steel garbage can with the lid on. She was planning to join the tour in Little Rock on October 23, three days after the crash. Laying on the ground, still alive for only a moment, to slowly bleed to death. One band member, JoJo Billingsly, was not on the flight. He was best known for being a Rock Singer. These things don't happen here. Mote fired a warning shot in the air. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Terror soon engulfed the cabin of the plane and the pilots were frantically trying to radio local Houston Air Traffic Control, stating they had a fuel issue and were most likely going to have to make a emergency landing. His only help at that moment was his neighbor, Dwain Easley. Photo: hu.wikipedia.com. The aircraft was destroyed by impact; there was no fire. Any debris left on the ground has long been buried. Truth be known, after 38 years, Martin is a little tired of talking about the whole thing. Members of the band that survived the crash said that Cassie actually . Powell's nose had been nearly ripped from his face after crashing head first through a table. Since Cassie was not aware of the band's existence at that time, Jojo offered her a copy of Lynyrd Skynyrd's first two albums to make her acquainted with the band's work. According to Powell, Cassie Gaines' final moments were particularly painful as she bled to death in his arms and that her throat had been cut from ear to ear, which gave more indications of execution than an accident. He then assembled a convoy of trucks and four-wheelers to locate the crash site and rescue the survivors. "I was well prepared with advanced trauma life support training," he said, "and (I was) a flight surgeon in the military. It was Steve, and me, and Ronnie and I was in the middle of them. She said her husband grabbed his .243 hunting rifle, ran out and fired a warning shot. Allen Collins kept moving on, eventually getting together with Gary Rossington to form the Rossington Collins Band. Ronnie Van Zant and Steve Gaines, along with backup singer Cassie Gaines (Steve's older sister), assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary, and co-pilot William Gray died. The original cover was restored after the 30th anniversary of the album. The sky is the limit for the talented actress. 1977 Plane Crash | Lynyrd Skynyrd | Fandom "They seemed to be chasing him, trying to flag him down. There are just too few physical landmarks. McDaniel was eager to join me. He claims that Artimus Pyle, drummer for Lynyrd Skynyrd, survived scathe-less and crawled into the bushes watching Ronnie and the others die in this horrid fiery crash. According to a Billboard report, he died of natural causes in his sleep. Allen Collins, another guitar player for the group, had cracked two vertebrae, and the cut to his right arm was so severe, that it almost required amputation. Her brother was Skynyrd guitarist Steve Gaines. Identification was completely hindered as there had been a poker game going on during the flight, and everyones wallets and purses had been strewn throughout the swamp. Photo: thetv.info. The album had two notable songs: Whats your name and That Smell. "I'd never seen anything like that," he said. Posted and no trespassing signs are prominently displayed. Everyone knows him as "Governor." I would like to think that only one grave robber was involved, but so many items were missing that I have to believe otherwise. It was as if they were back in Noahs time and all but a select few were stricken with greed of mankind and the chance to capitalize on an easy opportunity. Before joining the music band, she was an original cast member of a school play under Hairspray. When the news broke that it was Lynyrd Skynyrd's tour plane, Nancy and I stared at each other. He pulled the lifeless body of Cassie Gaines up by her belt. Wilkeson cheated death in 1977, surviving a crash of the band's chartered plane. The will to carry on was strong, however, Pyle being a US Marine, would live out the phrase Semper Fidelis which means always faithful. Artimus Pyle emerged with several broken ribs, and bleeding everywhere you could. Rock Musician. I began the classic guitar lick. Billy had taken too long on his intro to the song Free Bird and that didnt set well with Ronnie. Totaled, decimated, and left for dead. Boards are the best place to save images and video clips. He was only 39, but was no rookie. Tremendous physical pain overwhelmed the group as did mental exhaustion. Ronnie Van Zant enjoying a stog before a show. Lynyrd Skynyrd stops for a shot in 1973. But as my wife and I watched the news bulletins flash on TV, it was a big deal. Crying, praying, and counting the dead to see who they would never hug, play music with, and enjoy company with again. He rushed to his truck and headed in. Some were screaming and moaning for help, but they were all limp. Photo: Pinterest. Updated cover after plane crash, 1977The official NTSB accident report reads, "The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of this accident was fuel exhaustion and total loss of power from both engines due to crew inattention to fuel supply. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the probable cause of this accident was fuel exhaustion and total loss of power from both engines due to crew inattention to the fuel supply. The years after the crash would be difficult in its own right for surviving members, most of which would experience tragedy and early death themselves. With the tree tops approaching fast and just eight miles short of the air strip, the plane was headed for a Mississippi swamp and nothing could be done to save them now. In 1986, his car ran off a road and crashed into a culvert, paralyzing him from the waist down and killing his girlfriend. The band decided that once they had landed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, they would acquire a Learjet to replace the severely outdated 30-year-old plane. Los Angeles, Billie Eilishs phone is now internet-free: Im like: Ew! 2023 Getty Images. There were 26 people on that fateful flight. The band would be marked for strife as just before their inaugural tour, Allens wife would bleed to death due to a miscarriage. He had been impaled by a part of the fuselage and it pushed through his body and projected out of his back. The plane killed three band members (Ronnie Van Zant, Cassie, Steve Gaines) and Dean Kilpatrick (assistant road manager), Walter McCreary (pilot), and William Gray (co-pilot). You all just better get some rest. Dan Barnes recalls saying This man had just been to the funeral home and seen his son dead and decided to keep that to himself for these guys to heal. Deceased people hanging from trees, the other survivors moaning for help of any kind, and completely surrounded by a black swamp whose canopy is blocking the only light that is trying so desperately to shine through. The guys hit the dirt and yelling out with what they had left Hey! And it left Teresa Gaines a widow. The three injured men hiked some distance from the crash site, through swampy woods, and finally flagged down farmer Johnny Mote, who had come to investigate. With that cue, Governor took the honors and introduced everyone as Gabel's mouth gaped in disbelief. That's when Mote connected the dots with the noise he had heard earlier. Video of a barechested Pyle at the 1979 Volunteer Jam does not show evidence of a gunshot wound. In 1995, while on assignment in Phunket Thailand for the Times-Picayune's series "Oceans of Trouble," I boarded a small fantail fishing boat on the edges of the Andaman Sea with writer John McQuaid to photograph the disappearing mangroves. The flight was going good so far and other than Ronnie getting severely intoxicated while on the flight, all seemed to be setting up to be another routine flight. Most of the 20 survivors were taken to Southwest Regional Medical Center in McComb, where the lobby had been transformed into a makeshift emergency treatment center to quickly deal with the onslaught of plane crash victims. The plane was produced from 1947-1954. Security manager Gene Odom was seriously burned on his arm and face and lost the sight in one eye as a result of an emergency flare on board the plane that was activated during the crash. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. She was hesitant because she had seen a small fire in one of the engines the previous day. Cassie Gaines, Steve Gainess sister who were both bound for death in the crash, would routinely ride on the equipment bus rather than the plane. The two men, for a while, were the only able-bodied persons present to help pull people from the wreckage. One of them being completely decapitated. As the bulletins continued, they became more descriptive: "Tractors were pulling ambulances across a creek" was one exaggerated quote I remember so well. I had never seen anything like it before. Billy Powell would be in the new starting line-up of Lynyrd Skynyrd until his death in 2009. Cassie Gaines Wikipedia; Sponsored Links. He hopes to publish in time for the 40th anniversary of the crash. The rest of the group had no idea at the time that they would never see the face of Ronnie again. I'm really not sure anymore," he said. As the small band of brothers grew, the conversation grew lively but stayed reverent. For many years, a dozen red roses have been carefully placed around the base, much like the mysterious unfinished bottle of Martell cognac at the grave of Edgar Allen Poe in Baltimore. He suffered a heart attack . The band has been on tour, and dates through the weekend have been cancelled. In 1982 he would form the Allen Collins band but shortly after would wreck his new Ford Thunderbird, killing his then girlfriend and paralyzing Collins. I put them all to work. We knew every word. His first band recorded its debut at Sun Recording Studio in Memphis, and later bands included RIO Smokehouse and Rusty Day. Cassie Gaines: Southern Rock's Honkette | Rocks Off Mag The 22-year-old had been outside bailing hay in the twilight when he heard the crash in the distance, which he assumed was a car skidding in gravel. But after seeing helicopter searchlights, he started to assume it was a jailbreak instead. Billy had taken too long on his intro to the song Free Bird and that didnt set well with Ronnie. Photo: Uncle Johns Bathroom Reader. The location sounded familiar so he asked them to repeat. Collins began his rise to success as the lightning-fingered guitarist for the Jacksonville band formed in 1966 by a group of high school students. I dont like that, The Weeknd is getting mocked for his response to Rolling Stones The Idol expos, Daisy Jones & the Six review: Riley Keough fronts a rock soap opera, Aaron Carters mom posts awful photos from death scene, pushes for homicide inquiry, Wayne Shorter, influential jazz saxophonist and composer, dies at 89. The tour is scheduled to run through mid-September. Photo: thetv.info. As the three marched on, feet soaking wet from the water, all odds seemed stacked against the trio. A Convair CV-240, similar to the one in the crash. ", Other questions:subscriberservices@theadvocate.com. ", "I expected to see all dead people looking at these woods. Ronnies mother Marion refused to make the flight, after seeing a horrific plane crash of her own that killed 9 people. As we walked through the woods, Governor and I agree that nothing looked or felt the same. Steven Earl Gaines (September 14, 1949 - October 20, 1977) was an American musician. Allen's wife would bleed to death due to a miscarriage. She was famous for being part of the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. In a separate interview, revealing the story of sound man Paul Welch who suffered traumatic injuries in this crash and was sent into a coma, shares that the plane that was utilized during this trip was already catching fire around the engine area and Lynyrd Skynyrd had requested to cease using it. But I couldn't stand it any longer. It would be another hour before I heard the big news. Dean Kilpatrick, the bands manager, lay dead and covered in blood. Cassie Gaines (1948-1977) - Find a Grave Memorial Crying, praying, and counting the dead to see who they would never hug, play music with, and enjoy company with again. While the site is duly remembered, it is on private property and is not open to the public. He had already finished a film about the plane crash when Gary and several others stepped in and placed a lawsuit against the film to not be shown to the public. Four of the passengers were killed including bandleader and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, Cassie Gaines and assistant tour manager Dean Kilpatrick. Mote recalls the first thing he saw was a bloody hand sticking out from the wreckage. In this video you will see the true story behind the tragic passing of Ronnie Van Zant, Cassie Gaines, Dean Kilpatrick, and Steve Gaines on October 20, 1977. Cassie was buried in Orange Park, Florida, together with her brother, Steve Gains. Be the first to get hottest news from our Editor-in-Chief, Check your email and confirm your subscription. Other band members were injured, some very seriously. His luck, however, was on the short end of the stick as he would have his throat slit while on the Lynyrd Skynyrd tour bus in the early 90s. Medical personnel arrived and began to ferry out the injured and the dead. Steve Gaines was killed instantly upon impact and his sister Cassie Gaines perished as well. Rudge chartered three planes for loved ones to identify the bodies. Two bulldozers were dispatched to plow a primitive path off nearby Highway 568 in order to give a ground path available to the first responders. Deceased people hanging from trees, the other survivors moaning for help of any kind, and completely surrounded by a black swamp whose canopy is blocking the only light that is trying so desperately to shine through. That farm belonged to a young dairy farmer named Johnny Mote. Aerosmiths band management at the time was looking at a Convair CV-240. But one thing I'm proud of. She was born on 9th January 1948 in Missouri, USA. Soon after the plane would begin to jerk and shake violently. In 1982 he would form the Allen Collins band but shortly after would wreck his new Ford Thunderbird, killing his then girlfriend and paralyzing Collins. Sadly, it would end all to soon. Gary continues on the band with Ronnies brother, Johnny Van Zant, and guitarist Ricky Medlocke. After I led him to the downtown McComb offices, I returned home, developed my film in a clumsy bathroom darkroom and went to sleep. We had a friendly translator whose command of the English language was poor at best. Ronnies mother Marion refused to make the flight, after seeing a horrific plane crash of her own that killed 9 people. Cassie Gaines - Wikipedia Some of the guys were playing poker. After claiming his deceased son, Lacy Van Zant went to visit the other members of the band at the hospital. Band confidant, Gene Odum, is privately interviewed to share his story on what happened on this awful day in history. Especially Artimus, who had three broken ribs and multiple large cuts. Ronnie had died instantly upon impact, his head slamming into a tree. "It was the saddest thing," she recalls, 11 years later. She performed as a backup singer in popular hits such as One More Time and That Smell. Three crew members died in a plane crash just three days after the release of their 5th album. Cassie Gaines cause of death The talented singer met her death at the young age of 29. Natural causes were to blame. A tragic scene no person would ever wish to see or soon forget. "From there, we followed the lights of the helicopter," he said. They all died but we didnt. Both pilots were lost in the crash as well, however, a decent amount of fans seek the closure of their conviction of attempted manslaughter, even in death. The band buckled in. Wilkeson cheated death in 1977, surviving a crash of the band's chartered plane. Cassie was 29 years old at the time of death. Pilot Walter. Billy Powell would be in the new starting line-up of Lynyrd Skynyrd until his death in 2009. Lynyrd Skynyrd reformed in 1987, and has been touring and recording steadily ever since with Johnny Van Zant, brother of the late Ronnie, as lead singer. Johnny Mote and his ragtag team were first on the crash site. I'm from southern Thailand. Her mother passed away on 15th February 1979 in a car accident. We always wondered why, you know. The surviving members would grapple with this throughout their days. Things were going so well. Even though she survived the actual crash, she eventually bled to death before the rescue team could reach her.