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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The floatplane that crashed on McDonald Drive Thursday is now under quarantine at an undisclosed storage site in Yellowknife, accessible only to Transportation Safety Board officials, said TSB lead investigator Ray Tsuji.

Tsuji said the wreckage had been cleared by Saturday night and the road had reopened by Sunday.

"We examined the wreckage on site and we took what we needed for immediate examination ... one of the major items being the cockpit voice recorder. And that's gone to our lab (in Ottawa) for downloading and decoding," said Tsuji.

The Arctic Sunwest Twin Otter will remain in storage until the TSB completes its investigation and releases its report. "If questions come up in the course of our investigation that require further information, then we'll have it available," said Tsuji.

Tsuji said the insurance company that now owns the plane will then likely put it up for bid. "There's a lot of usable parts ... There could be a company that operates a number of Twin Otters. The engines probably have some salvage value ... the fuselage ... you know, it's hard to say but it's like an auto wrecking operation," he said.

The TSB took over as lead investigator after RCMP found no indication of criminal activity. The RCMP will be assisting the TSB.

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