Rice graduate and family killed in Florida plane crash

That horrific jet, a private jet that crashed in Palm Beach, Florida, killing all nine people on board. We now know some of them have ties right here to Houston, Texas. The plane from investigators left Austin and was heading to the Bahamas. All nine people died. The jet burst into flames when it crashed there and left a massive crater. Look at that. In the middle of the road, taking out power for so many living in the area, not to mention schools were closed here today because of it. The NTSB says weather conditions, well, that may be a major factor here in the investigation. The weather conditions are a major focus of the investigation. You all saw what the weather was like here at the surface. What we have to determine is what the weather conditions were like at altitude. They were at about 35,000 feet, and that's still something that has to be determined. We do have some evidence that there was some breakup of the aircraft before impact. We're still seeking to determine that. And again, all nine people were killed, including a tech entrepreneur, Adam Robinson, his wife and their two young children, and the family's nanny, Anita Maria Satina, along with friends, Charmi Fern and Rachel Reed, and the 55-year-old pilot, Jeff Gregory, and 20-year-old co-pilot, Nathalia Gadelha Figueroa. The Robinson family has ties to Houston and Rice. Leslie, fill us in. That's right, Anthony. It's a very, very tragic situation. And as you mentioned, family does have ties to Houston. So Rice University confirmed with me today that Adam Robinson actually went to school here. And he graduated in 2003. And while he was here, he played on the men's basketball team. And we also know that Adam Robinson went on several podcasts and talked about his time growing up in the suburbs of Houston. Now, in a joint Facebook post, the family talked about how devastating the loss is of him, his wife, and his two small children. So, here's what we know. So, the family says the toddlers are four and two, four-year-old Emma and two-year-old Charlie. The family describes Adam and Helen as devoted parents whose warmth and generosity made others feel welcome. And this is all according to their Facebook post. Now, Rice confirmed, as I mentioned, that Adam went to school here. And they tell us he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Spanish, and Managerial Studies back in 03. He was even a part of Jones College. Now, that's one of Rice's. And he earned two varsity letters on the men's basketball team during 2000 and the 2001 seasons. Now, according to Adam's website, he went on to build a career in tech. Retention.com lists him as the co-founder and CEO. Now, that's the company. And what they do is they help businesses identify people visiting their websites and reach potential customers. But his wife, Helen, also had a business of her own. Influential PR lists her as the CEO and founding partner. And she was also a ceramic artist, now her own personal website talks about her devotion and love of clay that began in kindergarten. And it even says how being a mother made her works not only so important, but just very pivotal for her. And of Ken, as you can imagine, this family is dealing with a very devastating loss. So at this time, they are asking for privacy as they grieve. Anthony. A little bit more about Adam and the business he started and the business release any statements or information in regards to that here today. The company did release a very lengthy statement, obviously talking about how devastated they are to lose their CEO. And we have that statement for you, so I want to read part of it. It says Adam was much more than our CEO. He was a friend, a mentor, and a bold outspoken leader who lived life to the fullest. He cared deeply about the people around him and brought energy and conviction to everything he built. Anthony, back to you. All right, Leslie, thank you so much.