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4 missing as planes vanish off 2 coasts

One small plane disappears off Florida's southeast coast, and another vanishes off the southwest coast.

MIAMI - Rescue crews were searching for four people off Florida's southeast and southwest coasts after two planes went missing Monday, Coast Guard officials said.

A twin-engine Piper was last heard from at 11:10 a.m., and a single-engine Cessna lost contact with the air traffic control center in Miami at 11:30 a.m., said Kathleen Bergen, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

The Piper was headed from Treasure Cay, Bahamas, to Fort Pierce with three people aboard, according to the Coast Guard in Miami. The Coast Guard said the plane may have crashed 25 miles east of Port St. Lucie off Florida's southeast coast. No debris had been found. A rescue helicopter, a Falcon jet, an HC-130 plane, a patrol boat, two rescue boats and two commercial salvage vessels were searching for the Piper.

The Cessna, with one person aboard, left Naples for Key West. The plane was reported to have gone down about 18 miles south of Sanibel. Coast Guard crews found a debris field about 30 miles northwest of Cape Sable on the edge of South Florida.

"We're looking for anything right now," said Anastasia Burns, Miami Coast Guard spokeswoman.

A Jayhawk helicopter was searching, along with two Coast Guard patrol boats.

The identities of the missing people and information about the aircraft registration weren't immediately available.

Rain and thunderstorms drenched South Florida on Monday, and the National Weather Service issued a flood watch for the region until Tuesday night.

[Last modified June 21, 2005, 02:30:30]