Missonaries bodies back from Haiti soon

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) - Relatives of four West Michigan missionaries killed when their vehicle slid down a Haiti hillside are working to have the bodies returned to Grand Rapids.

In a statement, Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Rapids spokesman Carl Apple said a coordinated effort in both the US and Haiti is working to transport the remains of Matt Kutsche, Mary La Ponsie and Jim and Rita Cwengros.

"An arrival date and time has not yet been determined, but we are hopeful it will happen by week’s end," Apple said in the statement.

He said the families are encountering "issues" and a lot of paperwork is involved, according to the Associated Press.

The Cwengros, Kutsche and LaPonsie were killed Friday while traveling in a convoy of vehicles with other missionaries on a medical mission to a parish in the mountains south of Port-Au-Prince.

Police in the Caribbean country have said their sport utility vehicle crashed through a barrier and down the hillside after its brakes failed.

A private plane was donated by Auto-Cam to bring the bodies of the killed missionaries home, according to Brad DeBruyne, whose wife was among those the mission trip.

DeBruyne is working with Kent County Undersheriff Jon Hess, who is Matt Kutsche's uncle, to bring the bodies back.
 
"Just can't say enough about the community leaders, the churches, the family, the friends. The people in the government that have helped us. It's just on and on and on I could name. It's been overwhelming the support for the families for the grieving and all the things that go off that, but just to help us through the process that we need to help bring our family members home," said Hess.

It usually takes two to three weeks to return bodies to the States, according to multiple sources.

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24 Hour News 8's Heather Walker contributed to this story.