The Nouvelle understands that local pathologist Dr. Shekar Puttaswamy was the pilot killed in Sunday's devastating plane crash northwest of Bonnyville. Puttaswamy, affectionately known throughout the region as Dr.
The Nouvelle understands that local pathologist Dr. Shekar Puttaswamy was the pilot killed in Sunday's devastating plane crash northwest of Bonnyville.
Puttaswamy, affectionately known throughout the region as Dr. Shekar, was the chief pathologist at the Bonnyville Healthcare Centre. He had lived in the community for the better part of a decade after joining the workforce of the local hospital in 2007.
Speaking to the Nouvelle on Tuesday, Bonnyville Mayor Gene Sobolewski said he first heard about the incident yesterday afternoon and confirmed Puttaswamy was the sole casualty of the crash.
"Dr. Shekar was the one (involved in the crash)," Sobolewski said. "It's a big shock right now to the local community and (a big shock to me personally). I got to know Dr. Shekar very well in my dealings with AHS and regarded him as a friend."
He added, "He was a man that always had a smile on his face, a real happy soul. He's going to be missed in this community, not only from a professional perspective, but also as a great member of the community."
Bonnyville RCMP was first notified of a potential problem when an aircraft deployed an emergency beacon over the rural detachment area at around 7:30 p.m. on Sunday night.
Local members immediately requested the assistance of the Canadian Forces' Search and Rescue Team in their bid to locate the aircraft. Following a brief search, emergency crews came across a downed single-engine Cessna 182L plane near Seibert Lake, roughly 70 kilometres northwest of town.
Puttaswamy, the lone occupant of the aircraft, was already dead when emergency crews discovered him.
Both local and provincial RCMP representatives have so far refused to confirm Puttaswamy was the individual killed in the crash, stating they first had to notify the deceased's next of kin before revealing further details. Police are currently working alongside Interpol to locate the family of the deceased.
In the meantime, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada has sent a team out to investigate the crash site in an effort to understand what brought the plane down.
