TORONTO - A Canadian aid worker remembered for his professional expertise and engaging personality was among the 17 victims of a plane crash in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a spokeswoman for his employer said Wednesday.
Maimouna Mills of the United Nations Development Program said 43-year-old Richard Ferland died Monday afternoon when his airplane went down in a storm en route to a humanitarian mission in the eastern part of the country. The other victims have yet to be identified.
Speaking from the Congolese capital of Kinshasa, Mills said the Levis, Que., native was recently hired as an expert on political governance and was providing guidance to provincial officials in the country.
Although Ferland had only been working for the UNDP for four months, Mills said he had spent five years in the Congo with the U.S.-based National Democratic Institute and said his familiarity with the country and its people gave him a cultural sensitivity that his coworkers valued as much as his friendliness and kindness.
"He was a fixture in the Congo. He knew the terrain, he knew the people, he knew the political parties, but he remained above all a people person," Mills said. "He made a lot of friends. He had a very infectious smile and had a kind word for everybody."
Mills said staff members praised Ferland's team spirit and noted his dedication to helping the Congolese people. She said Ferland is survived by his wife and three children.
The Beechcraft 1900 aircraft on which Ferland and his fellow aid workers was travelling crashed while trying to land amid treacherous weather conditions. UN helicopters discovered the wreckage of the plane the next day about 15 kilometres from its intended destination of Bukavu near the Rwandan border.
Mills said the rugged terrain and persistent stormy weather prevented UN workers from investigating the scene of the crash immediately, but said workers are making efforts to recover the victims' bodies.
The accident claimed a total of five UNDP employees as well as two from the UN Office of Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, according to a statement on the organization's website.
Officials with Cem Air, a South African commercial company that owned the aircraft, confirmed Tuesday that two of its crew members were on board the flight.
Mills said the plane was flying to Bukavu as part of a twice-weekly program run by Air Serv International, an aid group based in Warrenton, Va. Air Serv officials have said none of its employees were on board the flight.
UN officials were expected to release more information about the crash later Wednesday.
