LAS VEGAS (AP) — Delwin and Tamara Chapman were in Las Vegas to renew their wedding vows after 25 years of marriage when a luxury helicopter tour of the twinkling Las Vegas Strip and the iconic Hoover Dam caught their attention. Delwin loved to fly.
The sunset tour ended in a smoky crash Wednesday night, killing the Chapmans, a 31- year- old pilot and two other passengers in an accident that scattered helicopter debris across the River Mountains bordering Lake Mead.
Clark County Coroner Michael Murphy said the bodies were not easily recognizable and identifying the victims would likely involve the use of DNA, fingerprint and dental records.
Ron Solze, whose son is married to one of the Chapmans’ four daughters, identified the couple, saying they were well known in their small hometown of Utica, Kan. Delwin ran a construction company and his wife recently closed her hairstyling shop in the town of about 160 people.
“It’s a small town, so this affects a lot of people,” Solze said. “They were good people.”
Howard Bever, the Chapman’s pastor, said Delwin Chapman was the property chairman of the church in Utica and used his repair and maintenance skills to keep the church in immaculate shape.
“Someone said if (Delwin) thought he was going to go, though, he would want to go in something like a helicopter,” Bever told the The Hays Daily News. “ He had flown in power parachutes up to helicopters. He loved the sensation of flying.”
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