Authorities say 4 people aboard small Florida-bound plane that crashed after leaving Bahamas

4 feared dead in Bahamas plane crash

NASSAU, Bahamas — Authorities say four people were aboard a small plane that crashed into the sea after taking off from the Bahamas en route to Florida.

Petty officer Jennifer Johnson says the U.S. Coast Guard assisted the Royal Bahamas Police Force after the Sunday night crash. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the plane was a Piper aircraft.

Sgt. Chrislyn Skippings of the Royal Bahamas Police Force on Sunday said a search turned up no sign of the people aboard the aircraft. Their names were not immediately released. Skippings says the crash occurred in the ocean northeast of the Bimini Bay Resort.

The plane took off from New Providence island en route to Executive Airport in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.