What began as a morning flight over Talon Lake took a tragic turn Monday.
Shortly before 10 am, two planes, described as ultralight floatplanes, were flying over Talon Lake in the Shields Point area when one of the planes crashed into the thick bush behind a cottage, roughly 100 metres from the lake.
People staying at the cottage rushed to the crash site, and were soon joined by boaters who saw smoke coming from behind the building.
Within minutes, a bucket brigade had formed, with people scrambling to extinguish the flames.
It meant working their way through the wooded area, thick with trees and underbrush.
A man staying at the cottage, who asked that he not be identified, had just returned from a run with two others when he saw the commotion.
“The residents of the lake were fantastic. When they saw smoke, they came and helped. We were running coolers, and every kind of bucket one could imagine, plastic pails, some fire buckets, everything to try and get the fire out. Just a huge thank you to the other cottagers on the lake who boated in and helped run buckets up, and got that fire out before it spread. We had at least 14 or 15 people here by the time the fire was out. It probably was only 15 or 20 minutes, maybe half an hour, but everyone was pretty tired. We’re immensely grateful that folks came and helped out when they did.”
Police are not releasing the name of the deceased until family members have been notified.
The other aircraft was brought down safely on the water. The condition of that pilot is unknown.
North Bay OPP, along with the Bonfield Fire Department and the Bonfield Ambulance Service responded to the call.
Members of the Transportation Safety Board arrived on scene late Monday afternoon.
The investigation is continuing.
