2 seriously injured after small plane goes down near Mill Bay, B.C.
Two people are in hospital with serious injuries after a small plane crash-landed in a residential neighbourhood on Vancouver Island.
The privately registered Beech G36 Bonanza plane went down just before 1:25 p.m. Monday near Hayden Place in Mill Bay, approximately 44 kilometres north of Victoria.
Six ambulances and two air ambulances were dispatched to the scene, according to BC Emergency Health Services.
One person was taken from away from the crash site by ambulance in serious but stable condition. A second patient was airlifted from the scene in critical condition, according to emergency services.
Mill Bay Fire Chief Ron Beck said the male pilot and female passenger were both conscious and talking when first responders pulled them from the wreckage.
They were the only people on the plane, which was travelling from Sechelt to Victoria, according to the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB).
Mill Bay resident Thomas Roy was at the scene near Horton Road and Hayden Place shortly after the crash.
"I just came back home around 1:30 and saw the ambulances and fire department," Roy told CTV News.
The TSB says it is not deploying investigators to the crash site, but will "continue gathering information and assessing the occurrence."
The Victoria Airport Authority confirms the plane was intending to land at the Victoria airport when it went down.
The airport received a mayday call around 1:20 p.m. when the small plane reported engine trouble, according to the airport.
"Fire rescue got into response mode but were notified the pilot was instead going to attempt to land on a grass strip in the Mill Bay area," said airport spokesperson Rod Hunchak.
Jack Wilke says he was at a nearby skate park when he saw the plane circling overhead.
The 16-year-old resident said he then heard what sounded like "rocks crumbling," and realized the plane was on the ground just outside someone’s backyard.
The wreckage of the plane is expected to remain in the neighbourhood while the investigation into the cause of the crash continues.
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