Two of the three victims killed in last Saturday’s crash of a Cessna 182 in the mountains about 100 kilometres northeast of Smithers in central British Columbia have been identified. The crew of the aircraft, contracted by the B.C. Wildfire Service, was conducting an aerial survey of damage to forests caused by wildfires last year using specialized scanning equipment.

Passenger Lorne Borgal was founder and CEO or Precision Vectors, a company specializing in aerial mapping. Borgal was a former CEO of Whistler Mountain Ski Corporation.

“If you knew Lorne, you knew he was real. His integrity is uncanny and he is respected and loved by so many,” Chrissy Chapman, who worked before with Borgal, told CBC News.

Another victim was 26-year-old Amir Sedghi of North Vancouver, who worked for Precision Vectors as a data analyst and was a neighbour of Borgal’s when he was growing up. “They loved each other. They loved working together,” Sedghi’s brother Ammar told CBC News.

The pilot, not yet identified, perished in the crash. The lone survivor, who the CTV News reported was working for a U.S. company, was rescued and flown to Vancouver where he is recovering in hospital. He has not yet been identified.

The crash site was found quickly thanks to the proper operation of its Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT), which alerted the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Victoria of the aircraft’s GPS coordinates.

Both the Transportation Safety Board and the B.C. Coroners Service are continuing their investigations.

Photo courtesy of the Transportation Safety Board.