A member of the Snowbirds is dead and another has sustained critical injuries after a jet crashed shortly after takeoff into a neighbourhood in Kamloops, B.C. earlier Sunday.

The Royal Canadian Air Force confirmed the fatality in a tweet at 5:25 p.m. on Sunday. The surviving member of the crash suffered serious injuries, but are not considered life-threatening.

The Snowbirds had been on a tour of Canada called ‘Operation Inspiration’ due to not being able to fly due to COVID-19 bans on public gatherings. They’d flown through Eastern Canada, arriving in Moose Jaw earlier last week, and then headed to Saskatoon and eventually westward.  

A cross-Canada tour is nothing new for the CF Snowbirds, but this trip was specifically aimed at thanking all the frontline workers facing the challenges of COVID-19.

According to their Twitter feed, they were headed to Comox, B.C.  

The Transportation Safety Board has offered its assistance to the Snowbirds in the investigation of the crash after the aircraft fell into a residential area near Kamloops. 

After hours with no new information, a nation eagerly awaited for updates regarding those inside the aircraft, British Columbia Health Minister, Adrian Dix initially confirmed that one was injured.

Following a flood of eye-witness videos and pictures all over social media, The Royal Canadian Airforce officially issued a statement Sunday evening providing the update. 

Video courtesy of Jason Kyle Arnold/Facebook