By admin 
A former executive who led Telemundo television stations in Sacramento and Fresno for nearly five years was among seven people killed Wednesday in a helicopter crash in Kenya.
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José Alberto Suárez, 55, previously served as president and general manager of KCSO-LD, Channel 33, the Telemundo station serving the Sacramento area, and KNSO, Channel 51, the Telemundo station licensed to Clovis and serving the Fresno area.
Suárez held the position from April 2019 until February 2024, according to his LinkedIn profile. He later became president and general manager of Telemundo-owned stations serving Orlando, Tampa and Fort Myers-Naples in Florida.
Suárez and six others were killed during a helicopter tour of Mount Ololokwe in Samburu County in northeastern Kenya.
“It is with profound sorrow that we share the tragic news that José Suárez, president and general manager of the Telemundo-owned stations in Orlando, Tampa and Fort Myers, lost his life in a helicopter accident in Kenya,” César Conde, chairman of NBCU News Group; Valari Staab, president of NBCU Local; and José Cancela, president of Telemundo Station Group, said in a statement.
The statement described Suárez as “an exceptional colleague and a mentor to many,” and said his death left multiple NBC Telemundo stations in mourning.
Suárez, who was born in Florida, had more than 25 years of experience in the television industry. He also previously held leadership positions at Telemundo 51 in Miami.
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Also killed were passengers Roger Duarte, Adam Hlavaty, Henry Parra, Michele Sensi-Contugi and Stephany Hollihan, along with pilot Josh Outram, according to a Kenyan publication.
Duarte, 39, was a Miami food entrepreneur who founded seafood company George Stone Crab and restaurant chain My Ceviche. He was married to Nicole Valls, whose family owns the Versailles and La Carreta restaurants in Florida.
“The Duarte and Valls families are devastated and heartbroken by the tragic helicopter accident in Kenya that claimed the lives of our beloved Roger Edward Duarte, our dear friends Jose Suarez, Adam Hlavaty, Henry Parra, Michele Sensi-Contugi, and Stephany Hollihan Yeaza, as well as Josh Outram, the helicopter’s pilot”, the family said in a statement. “The magnitude of this tragedy is impossible to comprehend, and there are no words to express the depth of our pain. We ask that you keep them all and everyone who loved them in your prayers. We respectfully request privacy as our families grieve this unimaginable loss.”
Sensi-Contugi was an Italo-Ecuadorian entrepreneur and former government minister in Ecuador. His wife, Hollihan, a designer and entrepreneur who founded fashion and accessories brand Sensi Studio, also died in the crash.
“Stephany was a true visionary and an extraordinary force in Latin American fashion,” Latin American Fashion Summit said on Instagram.
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