Board probes dense smoke on B.C. flight

NANAIMO, B.C. Investigators with the Transportation Safety Board are being sent to Vancouver Island to determine why thick smoke suddenly filled the cabin of a commuter plane travelling to Nanaimo.

A news release from the board says a team will gather information and assess what happened Tuesday afternoon on board WestJet Encore flight 3161.

The Bombardier Q400 turboprop with 56 passengers and two crew aboard had almost completed its short hop from Vancouver to Nanaimo when smoke began wafting into the cabin.

Passenger Addison Becker says as conditions became smokier, the plane descended quickly.

It landed safely after the pilot declared an emergency, a procedure a spokeswoman for WestJet says establishes priority landing and also summons emergency vehicles.

She says all passengers and crew fled the aircraft minutes after it touched down and no one was hurt.