RCMP planning to break from search for victims, plane in Labrador crash
Province to receive assistance from federal government
As the search for victims of last Monday's float plane crash in Labrador continues, the RCMP says discussions have begun to schedule a "rest period" for officers who have now been on site for a week.
Divers have been searching the waters of the remote Mistastin Lake, about 100 kilometres southwest of Nain, since last weekend for missing passengers and the plane.
Seven men, including the pilot, were on board the de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver that had been travelling from Three Rivers Lodge to Mistastin Lake on July 15.
The body of a 50-year-old fishing guide from Newfoundland and Labrador was found on Wednesday, RCMP confirmed Friday.
Lodge guest John Weaver II of Chicago, fishing guide Dwayne Winsor of Deer Lake, N.L. and another 67-year-old man from New Jersey have also been found dead.
Pilot Gilles Morin of Quebec and Weaver's sons, John Weaver III and Matthew Weaver, are still missing.
The RCMP divers and other rescuers took over the search from Maritime Forces Atlantic, but the size and depths of the lake have proved challenging.
Cpl. Jolene Garland of the RCMP said Friday that a date to break from the search is being discussed, though a firm end date has not been determined.
"We're certainly considering, moving forward, what our next steps might be, that's in the planning stages … understanding that our officers will need a rest period," Garland said Friday.
Federal equipment and personnel on the way
The RCMP, meanwhile, will be getting some help from the federal government.
Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Ralph Goodale says he and Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan have accepted a request from the Newfoundland and Labrador government to provide assistance with the ongoing recovery efforts.
That assistance will include "equipment and personnel from the Canadian Armed Forces that are able to detect and recover remains and other items at underwater depth levels found in Mistastin Lake," Goodale said in a statement issued Friday.
The minister called the crash "a terrible tragedy," and on behalf of all Canadians extended condolences to the friends and families of those who lost their lives.
The cause of the crash is still unknown.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada said earlier this week that investigators would visit the site to inspect the plane after it has been located and removed from the water.
Jean Tremblay, president of airline Air Saguenay, which owned the plane, said it had recently been inspected and that the pilot had high safety standards.