LOCAL RETIRED DOCTOR AND WIFE KILLED IN COLORADO PLANE CRASH

An orthopedic surgeon who practiced many years in Griffin and his wife were killed Wednesday afternoon when their single-engine plane crashed in Colorado.

The Douglas County Colorado Coroner’s Office says 65-year-old Kathleen Velazco and 73-year-old Antenor Velazco were killed when their single-engine propeller plane struck an electrical line on approach to Centennial Airport and crashed in a large field on Wednesday.

The Denver Gazette reports that Antenor Velazco was a private pilot certified by the Federal Aviation Administration and an orthopedic surgeon. He is believed to have been flying the plane at the time of the crash.

Velazco practiced orthopedics for over 20 years and had offices in Griffin prior to his retirement in March. Hartney-Velazco practiced anesthesiology with Capitol Anesthesiology in Clayton County.

The Federal Aviation Administration says the single-engine Lancair Evolution had taken off from Neosho, Missouri, earlier in the day. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident.