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.
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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.