Animal rescue groups across the country, including one in Fayette County, are mourning 49-year-old Seuk Kim, a beloved volunteer with Pilots N Paws who died in a plane crash while rescuing dogs.

A volunteer pilot flying three rescue dogs to a care facility in upstate New York died along with one of the dogs after his plane crashed in the state's Catskill Mountains, according to officials. Seuk Kim,

After apparently hitting turbulence, Kim's 1986 Mooney M20J crashed in the snowy woods of the Catskill Mountains, killing the 49-year-old pilot and one of the dogs, authorities said. The other two pups survived and were recovering Tuesday.

Seuk Kim, a 49-year-old father of three, was flying three dogs from “high euthanasia shelters” to a rescue shelter in New York when the plane went down.

Seuk Kim was transporting three rescue dogs from Maryland to Albany, N.Y., when his plane crashed in the Catskill Mountains. Two of the dogs managed to survive.