Prominent Kansas business owner Ron Bramlage and family confirmed dead in Lake Wales plane crash

LAKE WALES, Fla. - Six family members are now confirmed dead after a plane crashed in the Tiger Creek Preserve south of Lake Wales on Thursday.

The victims have been identified as Ron Bramlage, 45, a prominent Kansas businessman, his wife, Rebecca (Becky), 43, and their four children, Brandon, 15, Boston, 13, Beau, 12, and Roxanne, eight.

Theresa Underwood, a member of the family, spoke to the Scripps station in Kansas City.  "We are heart broken," she said. "They were an amazing family."

Ron Bramlage is the grandson of Fred Bramlage, namesake for Bramlage Colliseum at Kansas State University.  Ron was the owner of Roadside Ventures LLC of Junction City, in Kansas, which owned the aircraft, a 2006 Pilatus PC-12/47 (single-turboprop, fixed wing) plane.

The aircraft had taken off from Treasure Cay Airport located in the Abaco Islands, Bahamas.  They stopped at the St. Lucie County International Airport in Fort Pierce, to clear customs.   They took off from Fort Pierce at 12:05 p.m. en route to Junction City.  

The aircraft was traveling at approximately 26,000 feet when it first began experiencing trouble.  Parts of the aircraft have been located as far as 2 miles from the crash site.  It is apparent that parts of the aircraft separated before the crash.  

Investigators do not know what caused the crash at this time.  

The crash site is in a remote and uninhabited area.  Deputies were able to reach the area by helicopter with medical personnel; it was immediately clear that there were no survivors of the crash.  

One body still has not been found.  Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said his deputies are searching for the missing child "as if it were one of our own."

Stay with abcactionnews.com as the story develops.