NOKESVILLE, Va. -- The apparent deaths of a mother and daughter aboard Tuesday’s flight out of Barcelona has left neighbors in northern Virginia reeling, including Emily Selke's boyfriend who declined an on-camera interview. His mom told WTVR CBS 6 that Emily and her son were inseparable going all the way back to middle school. The mother and daughter from Nokesville are two of three Americans on-board the Germanwings flight that crashed in the southern French Alps Tuesday. They and the other 147 passengers and crew are missing and presumed dead.
Emily and Yvonne Selke were described off-camera as two peas in a pod by parishioners at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Manassas. Yvonne had been a volunteer in the church’s faith formation program since 1993. Emily was a three-year college graduate of Drexel University. Friends of the family said she had been dating her best friend for 11 years after meeting in middle school. Yvonne Selke worked as a government contractor for Booz Allen Hamilton.
Family members released a statement that said in part:
Our entire family is deeply saddened by the losses of Yvonne and Emily Selke, two wonderful, caring, amazing people who meant so much to so many. At this difficult time we respectfully ask for privacy and your prayers.
Officials said 150 passengers were on the flight from Spain to Germany. The cause of the crash is under investigation, but authorities said evidence on the plane’s voice recorder suggested one of the pilots was locked out of the cockpit and was desperately trying to get inside as the plane plummeted.
