Three people killed after private plane crashes off Rottnest Island, Western Australia

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The bodies of three people have been recovered off Rottnest Island in Western Australia. A sea plane carrying six passengers and a single pilot crashed while attempting to take off from the island's Thompson Bay yesterday afternoon.

Transcript

00:00Well, just behind me here at Thompson Bay is the site where a privately owned aircraft

00:06took off with seven people on board, including the pilot, and it crashed during takeoff.

00:13Four people were rescued from the wreckage and they were airlifted to Perth last night.

00:17Three of them were injured and we believe they are now in a stable condition in hospital.

00:22Authorities yesterday told us that three people remain unaccounted for, but today the Premier

00:27Roger Cook confirmed three bodies were recovered from the wreckage by water police divers last

00:34night.

00:35The deceased include a 65-year-old woman who was believed to be a Swiss tourist, a 60-year-old

00:40man believed to be visiting from Denmark, and the pilot, a 34-year-old man who was living

00:46in Perth.

00:47The tragic event was watched by many on nearby boats, the Premier thanking them for their

00:52bravery.

00:53Here is some of what he had to say.

00:54For something so tragic to happen in front of so many people, at a place that provides

01:00so much joy, especially at this time of the year, is deeply upsetting.

01:05I want to formally acknowledge all members of the public on several private vessels that

01:12were in the area and acted immediately to help.

01:16They put their own safety at risk to help complete strangers who were in desperate need.

01:23That took courage, that took bravery, especially given what was a very distressing situation.

01:31I want to thank those Western Australians.

01:35They responded with true Western Australian spirit and their efforts undoubtedly saved

01:39lives.

01:40Now a joint investigation has been launched between WA Police and the Australian Transport

01:45Safety Bureau.

01:47The police will be investigating the three fatalities and preparing a report for the

01:51coroner.

01:52And the ATSB will be looking into what exactly caused the crash.

01:56Investigators will arrive in Perth today from the Perth office, Brisbane and Canberra.

02:01And they will be wanting to speak to any eyewitnesses and also the survivors who were on board their

02:06aircraft.

02:07In the meantime, a 200-metre exclusion zone has been set up around the wreckage while

02:12the police and the ATSB conduct their investigation.

02:16It's a tragic result during what is the busiest time of year on Rottnest Island and usually

02:21a joyful time of year during the holidays.

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