RESOLUTE BAY, Nunavut (AP) — A chartered Boeing 737 plane crashed Saturday afternoon in Canada's Arctic region, killing 12 people, police said.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the plane went down near the hamlet of Resolute Bay in the Arctic territory of Nunavut. The First Air charter flight was traveling from Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories to Resolute Bay, and was scheduled to continue on to Grise Fiord on Ellesmere Island.
RCMP Constable Angelique Dignard said 12 people died in the crash and three people were injured. The plane was carrying 15 people, including four crew members.
Police did not have any information about the condition of the three survivors.
First Air said in a news release that the plane last reported communication at 12:40 p.m. local time when it was about five miles (eight kilometers) from Resolute Bay airport. The company said the Transportation Safety Board has been notified.
On its website, First Air says it serves the cargo and travel needs of remote northern communities in Canada's Arctic, connecting 30 northern communities with some of Canada's bigger cities.
Resolute Bay is an Arctic waterway in Nunavut. The population of the hamlet is about 230, many of whom are aboriginal natives known as Inuit people.
The crash site is less than 1.2 miles (1.9 kilometers) west of the Resolute Bay community and is accessible by ATV, but she notes it is rough terrain, Dignard said.
Dignard said local residents have been assisting with the rescue.
Hundreds of military personnel were already in the area to take part in the Canadian military's annual northern training exercise.
Maj. Gerald Favre at the northern search and rescue center at Canadian Forces Base Trenton says its aircraft have been able to assist in the rescue operation because they were already in the area as part of the training exercise. He said the plane that crashed was not part of the exercise.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is scheduled to travel to Resolute Bay on Monday for his annual trip to the Arctic while Governor General David Johnston, who is currently touring the Arctic, was scheduled to hold events in Resolute Bay this weekend.
