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Small plane crashes into Courtenay River

A pilot was able to swim to safety after a small plane crashed into the Courtenay River Friday shortly after 1 p.m.
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A small plane crashed into the Courtenay River Friday afternoon. Photo by Erin Haluschak

A pilot was able to swim to safety after a small plane crashed into the Courtenay River Friday shortly after 1 p.m.

Witness Josh Duncan, who works at a nearby kayak shop at the Courtenay Airpark, said he and his co-worker Hayley Birss were loading boats onto the lawn when he saw what he initially thought was a float plane coming to land.

“Just as it hit the water, the nose flipped in and it just started to sink right down. Shorty after we ran down and a guy came out, swam to the dock, everybody helped him out and just after that paramedics and the fire department started showing up.”

He said another person at the scene told him the plane had stalled right before the crash, which he added would explain why it was flying so low to the water.