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Sole Survivor

The sole survivor of a fiery plane crash in northwestern Ontario earlier this month said he tried in vain to unstrap fellow passengers, only managing to pull out the pilot before collapsing in the snow. Brian Shead, 36, has been in hospital in Winnipeg since the Jan. 10 crash in North Spirit Lake First Nation. Shead crawled from the burning wreck, suffering a broken nose, foot and ankle. The plane, an eight-seat Piper PA-31 Navajo operated by Keystone Air, was on its landing approach when it slammed into a frozen lake and caught fire about a kilometre from the runway in the remote community. After trying but failing to unlock fellow passengers seatbelts, Shead managed to unstrap the pilot and get him away from the craft. He said he likes to think that no one else was still alive and suffering at that point.

Story was last updated at: 2012-02-06 09:53:05