3 confirmed dead in plane crash near Kelowna, B.C.
Three people were killed in a float plane crash about 25 kilometres southwest of Kelowna in the Okanagan region of B.C. on Sunday evening, the Transportation Safety Board has confirmed.
The single-engine de Havilland Beaver float plane went down in a heavily wooded area on an embankment below Highway 97C about seven kilometres west of the intersection with Brenda Mines Road around 6:45 p.m. PT.
Crews from B.C. Ambulance and the West Kelowna Fire Department responded to the fiery crash, but were unable to save anyone from the flames.
On Sunday night emergency officials confirmed that at least one person died, but were prevented by darkness from conducting a thorough search of the smouldering wreckage.
TSB inspectors and the coroner were back at the site on Monday morning and TSB investigator Bill Yearwood confirmed all three people had died in the crash.
Crews are expected to begin the recovery effort and investigation into the cause of the crash on Monday.
The plane was reportedly on a day trip from Pitt Meadows, east of Vancouver. It had departed Kelowna on its return trip when witnesses said they saw it flying low over the trees, according to RCMP Const. Claudette St. Thomas.
"They noticed that the airplane turned around and started heading back towards the Merritt area as if it were looking for a landing area, possibly the highway and ... the plane went down."
Weather conditions were good at the time of the crash.
Yearwood said the plane was carrying four people when it left Pitt Meadows, but only three were on board for the return flight when it crashed.
