One dead after plane bound for Courtenay crashes on Vancouver Island
Posted December 22, 2019 11:27 am.
Last Updated December 23, 2019 6:58 am.
VANCOUVER ISLAND (NEWS 1130) — At least one person has died after a plane crash on the west side of Vancouver Island, according to the BC Coroner’s Service.
RCMP say investigators found the plane’s wreckage on Sunday after it was reported overdue for its arrival Saturday afternoon in Courtenay.
The force says the wreckage was found near Sydney Inlet Provincial Park, about 10 kilometres northwest of Tofino.
The Comox Valley RCMP contacted the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre and search and rescue crews from the Comox 442 Squadron.
Major Sandy Bourne, with the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, says crews attempted to search Saturday night, but low visibility prevented them from being able to dispatch search teams.
“We dispatch a few planes yesterday. Today, the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Coast Guard were involved in looking into whether or not there was something going on,” she says. “And last night, the visibility was bad. So they started in this morning and actually found the crash site.”
