Two more names have been added to a list of victims aboard a helicopter that crashed off the coast of Newfoundland, while the TSB says it has discovered wreckage of the aircraft.
In total, 18 people were travelling on the Sikorsky S-92 helicopter when it crashed Thursday about 65 kilometres southeast of St. John's. Just one person survived.
At a press conference Saturday afternoon, RCMP Chief Supt. Reg Reeves read out some of the names of those still missing, and a woman who has been confirmed dead:
- Peter Breen, 55, St. John's
- Gary Corbett, 46, Conception Bay, N.L.
- Wade Drake, 42, Fortune, N.L.
- Wade Duggan, 32, Witless Bay, N.L.
- Colin Henley, 38, St. John's
- Ken MacRae, 47, Greenwood, N.S.
- Derrick Mullowney, 51, Bay Bulls, N.L.
- Burch Nash, 44, Fortune, N.L.
- Paul Pike, 49, Spaniard's Bay, N.L.
- Allison Maher, 26, Aquaforte, N.L. (confirmed deceased)
RCMP later added two more names to the list, both from British Columbia communities:
- Tim Lanouette, 48, of Comox
- Thomas Anwyll, 46, of Langley
Maher is believed to have been the only woman on board the helicopter. Her aunt, Ada Maher, said her niece had worked as a caterer and housekeeper on oil rigs for the past three years, and held few fears about flying out to her workplace -- the Sea Rose oil platform -- by helicopter.
"She didn't seem like she was scared of anything," she said. "She was pretty brave, a very outgoing girl. She'd try anything once."
Her family is grateful that authorities were able to recover her remains. But they feel the pain of the 16 other families who are still waiting to find their missing loved ones.
"We got her back, thank God. We were one of the lucky ones," Ada Mather said.
Maher's funeral is scheduled for Monday.
Wreckage found
Earlier Saturday, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said it had located the wrecked fuselage of the helicopter.
"I can now confirm...that object that we saw on the bottom with the sonar is indeed the Cougar helicopter," TSB lead investigator Mike Cunningham told 麻豆影视net.
"It is relatively intact, as far as the fuselage itself goes. The tail-boom of the helicopter is broken off, but it's lying on the bottom close to the fuselage."
Cunningham said authorities are examining the site via camera, but could not yet confirm if any bodies were inside the wreckage.
The helicopter, operated by Cougar Helicopters, was ferrying workers to the Hibernia and Sea Rose oil platforms when it reported mechanical problems during its flight. It turned back towards St. John's, issued a distress call and plunged into the water eight minutes later.
Only one man is known to have survived the crash, and only one body has been recovered. The remaining 16 passengers and crew members are missing and presumed dead.
Search efforts ended at 7:30 p.m. on Friday after officials said "the likelihood of finding survivors is no longer there."
The lone survivor
Robert Decker, the only confirmed survivor of the crash, remains in critical condition at a St. John's hospital.
His family released a statement Saturday thanking the people who rescued him and the medical staff taking care of him.
Premier Danny Williams said he has known Decker for years.
"He's very personable, very light-hearted, very humorous, fun-loving, and a great individual," he said. "He's a typical Newfoundlander and Labradorian."
Williams said Decker is a member of a St. John's yacht club and speculated that his sailing experience may have helped him survive at sea.
"Certainly, his recollection of exactly what happened out there will be very, very important to a lot of people," the premier said.
There were some questions raised about how quickly the Canadian military responded, amid reports that the helicopters used were busy on a training mission at the time of the crash. But officials said the training exercise didn't jeopardize search and rescue efforts and didn't result in delays.
Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre spokesperson Maj. Paul Doucette said Saturday the military aircraft involved in the search did "everything possible" to rush to the crash site.
"I can confirm that they did everything possible to get their aircraft to the scene as quick as possible," he told 麻豆影视net in a phone interview from Halifax.
"With the exercise going on, they were there and they were at their aircraft, and actually all of the six aircraft involved were in the air in about 20 minutes and one of those was basically in instantaneously."
With files from The Canadian Press
