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The wife of the lone survivor of Tuesday's plane crash in northwestern Ontario that killed four people says it's remarkable he got out alive from the burning wreckage.

Tracy Shead told CBC News her husband, Brian Shead, was sitting in the last row of the small plane en route to North Spirit Lake from Winnipeg.

The Piper PA-31 Navajo went down about 10 a.m. about a kilometre from the runway in the remote community.

"I guess the tail broke off and he was able to crawl out," Tracy Shead said. "It's amazing. I'm just so happy he's alive."

The plane was on its landing approach when it slammed into a frozen lake and caught fire, Peter Hildebrand of the Transportation Safety Board told media on Tuesday.

The cause of the crash isn't yet known, though there are reports of blizzard conditions at the time.

Four people on the plane — three passengers and the pilot — were killed.

Tracy Shead visited with Brian Tuesday night in Winnipeg's Health Sciences Centre, where he's in stable condition with injuries to his face and foot.

"It was amazing just to see him, and he's talking and he's coherent and he's alive," she said.

He is having a difficult time thinking about what happened and the loss of friends and colleagues, she said.

Worked for Winnipeg company

Brian Shead and two of the other passengers worked for Aboriginal Strategies, a Winnipeg company that provides financial management services to First Nations.

David Harper, grand chief of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, the agency representing northern Manitoba chiefs, said Ben van Hoek, a financial manager with Aboriginal Strategies, was among those killed.
 

He described Van Hoek as a mentor in many remote communities.

“He was a man that would go to any length to help out and these are the communities that a lot of people never hear about — those are the communities he would go to.”

Chief George Kemp, of the Berens River First Nation in Manitoba, praised van Hoek's commitment to those remote communities.

“He liked to go and see for himself. Being a manager, he could have sat back and and let other people go, but that wasn't his style. He liked to be involved and get to know people and so forth,” Kemp said.

One of the other deceased passengers, Colette Eisinger, was originally from the Sagkeeng First Nation in Manitoba, though she was most recently living in Winnipeg.

Sagkeeng Chief Donovan Fontaine said the woman was related to two of his employees, and they're taking the news hard.

"She was well educated in finances, accountability, that's the work she did, so a big loss," Fontaine said.

Aboriginal Services identified the third victim as Martha Campbell but did not say anything more.

The name of the pilot has not been released. The plane was operated by Keystone Air Service Ltd., a charter airline based in St. Andrews, Man.

Federal investigators with the Transportation Safety Board will be at the crash scene on Wednesday.

They couldn't reach the crash site earlier because of its remote location.

Statement from Aboriginal Strategies

The staff of Aboriginal Strategies is deeply feeling the loss of part of our family. Our president, Ben van Hoek and accountant Colette Eisinger died Tuesday morning, January 10, 2012, in a tragic plane crash in the community of North Spirit Lake First Nation.

We grieve together with their families and extend our deepest condolences. Our sympathies also extend to the family of Martha Campbell and we extend our gratitude to the many North Spirit Lake community members that assisted with the rescue efforts and with communications with our office during this stressful time.

Our condolences also to the family of the pilot and to the Keystone Air staff.

We pray for a speedy recovery for our co‐worker, Brian Shead, the only survivor of the crash.

— Lyndon Olfert, on behalf of the board, management and staff of Aboriginal Strategies

  
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