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People place poppies on ceremonial wreaths at the Montreal Cenotaph following a Remembrance Day ceremony in Montreal on Wednesday.Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press
A pilot has died after a small plane involved in a Remembrance Day ceremony crashed south of Quebec City, in the province’s Beauce region.
Provincial police confirmed the death of a man in his 60s after they were called to the site around 11 a.m. on Wednesday.
Spokesperson Sergeant Audrey-Anne Bilodeau said the crash occurred in a wooded area near the airport in Saint-Georges, a small city about 100 kilometres from the provincial capital. The pilot was pronounced dead at the scene.
Quebec Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon offered his condolences to the victim’s family in a social media post and said he is in contact with the province’s Domestic Security Minister.
In a statement posted to social media, the city of Saint-Georges said the pilot had just participated in a Remembrance Day ceremony and was preparing to land when it crashed and caught fire.
“What has just happened is truly sad and terrible,” Saint-Georges Mayor Manon Bougie said in the statement. “Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones affected by this tragedy. All our thoughts and prayers are with them at this time.”
The Department of National Defence has confirmed that the plane did not belong to the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the pilot was not a member of the Canadian Armed Forces.
Sgt. Bilodeau said the pilot was alone in the plane and no one else was injured.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada said investigators are on their way to the site.
More to come