9-passenger company plane crashes in South Africa

JOHANNESBURG – A private plane carrying nine people, including the chief executive of a South African tile company, crashed in a nature reserve 320 miles east of Cape Town, rescuers said Wednesday. There were no survivors.

Debris from the plane, missing for 14 hours, was found early Wednesday morning, said National Rescue Service spokesman Craig Lambinon.

Rescuers said they recovered bodies of Italtile Ltd. chief executive Gianpaolo Ravazzotti and eight of his colleagues and business partners Wednesday morning.

There was heavy fog, but the cause of Tuesday's crash is still under investigation, Lambinon said. The single-engine plane was flying between two small airports in South Africa.

Italtile Ltd. chief financial officer Peter Swatton said: "On behalf of the Board, I express my heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the chairman of the group, Mr Gianni Ravazzotti, his wife Annabel and their daughters and Gianpaolo's wife, Vanessa and their children, as well as the families of all of the deceased."

Italtile Ltd. is a Johannesburg-based retailer of ceramic tiles and bathroom accessories. It has been publicly traded on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange since 1988.