Businessman Luiz Claudio Salgueiro Galeazzi and his family died in the plane crash which took place this Sunday (22), in Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul. Galeazzi was the owner and pilot of the aircraft and was accompanied by his wife, three children, his sister, his brother-in-law, his mother-in-law and two children.
In addition to the deaths of the plane’s occupants, 17 people were injured on the ground, most from smoke inhalation, and treated in hospitals in the region. Of these, five have already been released, 12 are still being treated, two of which are in serious condition, with burns and one of them is being transferred to Porto Alegre.
The information comes from the governor of Rio Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite, and state authorities, at a press conference this Sunday afternoon. As it was a private flight, the list of passengers, according to Leite, was not formalized before boarding, but the identity of the dead was concluded based on information from Galeazzi’s partner, the hotel where they were staying and images of the airport .
“[Quero] I sympathize with the family, an immense pain that certainly affects the family of these victims, but which also shakes all of us here in the state and in Serra Gaúcha”, said Leite.
“The victims are from São Paulo, but they came to enjoy moments in our state, to reunite with their family in Serra Gaúcha, which is a place that welcomes families so well and provides moments of great joy for children, young people, couples, in this especially Christmas time. And, unfortunately, on Christmas Eve, the families of the victims will feel this immense pain, in what was supposed to be a moment of joy only”, lamented the governor.
Graduated in business administration from Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV), Luiz Cláudio Salgueiro Galeazzi worked in business management consultancy and was a partner and CEO of Galeazzi & Associados. The company was founded by his father, Claudio Galeazzi, now deceased, who worked on several restructuring processes for large companies in the country. Luiz Cláudio’s mother also died in a plane crash, in 2010, in Sorocaba, in the interior of São Paulo.
Accident
The aircraft he piloted this Sunday was a twin-engine model PA-42 Cheyenne, manufactured in 1990 by Piper Aircraft. The plane took off at 9:12 am from Canela airport, a city neighboring Gramado, bound for Jundiaí, in São Paulo.
Before crashing, the aircraft collided with the chimney of a building, then the second floor of a residence and then crashed into a furniture store. The wreckage even reached an inn, where the two people who suffered serious burns were.
The Military Fire Department controlled the fire resulting from the crash of the aircraft, but is still working to stabilize and remove the iron structure of the store so that they can access the wreckage and remove the bodies.
The Civil Police of Rio Grande do Sul and the Center for Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (Cenipa), of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), work, in parallel, to investigate the causes of the accident, with different focuses.
Cenipa aims to investigate aeronautical occurrences to prevent new accidents with similar characteristics from occurring. Police authorities are now searching for possible perpetrators of the tragedy.
According to the governor, it is not possible to speak about the technical conditions of the aircraft, but he said that it took off in weather conditions “that were not the best”.
“But studies and experts will be able to say whether the conditions were conducive or favorable or possible for the flight or not”, he reinforced.
The FAB reported that it was called to investigate the incident, involving the aircraft registered PR-NDN. According to the registration of the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac), it is in the name of Luiz Claudio Salgueiro Galeazzi, in a normal airworthiness situation, and could be used for private transport, with operation denied for air taxi.
Gramado City Hall has suspended the traditional Christmas parade that takes place in the city, scheduled for this Sunday. There is a partial release of traffic on Avenida das Hortênsias, the location of the accident.
Guests who were at the inn that was hit have already been relocated to other hotels in the city.
