JUNE 06, 2015
GATINEAU, CANADA
Two men were seriously injured after a small float plane
crashed into the Ottawa River shortly after takeoff early Saturday afternoon,
police say.
The crash happened at about 12:30 p.m. off du Fer à
Cheval Road on the Quebec side of the river, near Gatineau's Masson-Angers
neighbourhood.
A 71-year-old pilot instructor was flying the
float plane at the time, said Gatineau police spokesman Sgt. Jean-Paul Le
May, and a 27-year-old student was in the passenger seat.
The two men were taking a ride and were not in
a lesson.
They had just taken off when the plane rapidly descended.
Lorraine Maisonneuve and her family were out boating in
two boats when they saw the float plane take off.
"I was planning to take a picture to show to my
grandchildren, and then the plane just turned around and went nose-[first] in
the water," Maisonneuve said.
Lorraine Maisonneuve says she's proud of her son for acting
quickly to help the two men. (CBC News)
"I was glad that it didn't hit my son's boat because it
was so close. And then my son jumped in the water and saved the two
people," she said.
Daniel Maisonneuve said the plane was flying about 30 metres
above his boat when it nose-dived into the water nearby. He said he jumped in
the water to help the two men get out of the plane.
"They were in pretty rough shape with head injuries.
You name it — everything you would expect from a plane crash,"
he said.
The two men suffered serious but not life-threatening
injuries and were taken to hospital, Gatineau police said.
The float plane later sank.
"We have reason to believe that the quick response from
the boaters certainly helped the two passengers of the plane, but we're still
at a stage where we're collecting information, so we don't know the impact of
this help they received," Le May said.
Lorraine Maisonneuve said she's proud of her son's actions.
"I'm very proud and very surprised that he
[spontaneously did] such a thing," she said.
Witness says float plane had just taken off on Ottawa River
when it nosedived & crashed into water. Plane has sunk pic.twitter.com/ReCS1jGPEF
Gatineau Police say small float plane crashed into Ottawa
River injuring two people #cbcott
#ottnews pic.twitter.com/CNm7zoemdw
Source: http://www.cbc.ca