Whitehorse Daily Star

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REALIZING A LIFE-LONG GOAL – Robert and Randy Striff are seen last weekend in front of the wreckage of the crash that killed their father in 1967 in northern B.C. Photo by SARA CAMERON

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Photo by Vince Fedoroff

THE ENABLERS – Persistent sleuthing by Sara and Kyle Cameron enabled them to con- tact the Striff brothers in the United States and arrange for them to see the site of the 1967 crash that took the life of their father.

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A FATHER LOST – Robert Striff was the radio operator and one of three people who died when their U.S. Coast Guard aircraft crashed in 1967 in northern B.C. Photos courtesy SARA CAMERON

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A SOBERING DISCOVERY – Robert Striff Jr. checks out his late father’s rifle, which he found last weekend at the site of the 1967 crash south of Atlin, B.C. Photos courtesy SARA CAMERON

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A member of the expedition holds a 51-year-old muffin from the rations found in the wreckage. Photos courtesy SARA CAMERON

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TANGLED WRECKAGE – Kyle Cameron sits last weekend atop one of the wings of the U.S. Coast Guard aircraft that went down south of Atlin, B.C. 51 summers ago. Photos courtesy SARA CAMERON

Brothers visit site of crash that claimed father’s life

More than 50 years ago,

By Palak Mangat on June 22, 2018

More than 50 years ago, the Sloko Lake in British Columbia was the site of a plane crash that claimed three lives after a U.S. Coast Guard aircraft crashed in 1967.

Last weekend, it played host to an American family longing for closure – thanks in part to a Whitehorse couple who said they’ve gained not only new experiences and lessons, but lifelong friends too.

That Whitehorse couple is Kyle and Sara Cameron, who initially visited the wreckage site just south of Atlin, B.C. in August 2017.

The wreckage had remained largely untouched until then – even now, the Camerons suspect and hope it stays that way.

“I hope that if people do end up wanting to go into it, I hope they are respectful of the site,” said Sara.

She and Kyle have seen their fair share of wreckages after treks in Canada, Guatemala and the United States.

After the public discovers these sites, some begin to pick apart the parts of a plane, for example.

“They don’t look at it like it’s a memorial, they’re not sensitive to what happened at that site,” Sara told the Star this week.

This time, though, it was different.

The wreck had “nothing missing,” Sara said, as Kyle noted the site itself was extremely remote and was accessed by float plane, then a helicopter.

So when Randy and Robert Striff, two brothers now in their 50s, joined the couple last weekend to see where their father had perished on that fateful day in 1967, it was a much-needed and special moment.

“They got to be the ones to see the whole wreck in its entirety, instead of having to piece it all together,” recalled Sara.

Listening intently, Kyle smiles.

“Initially, we set out on an adventure,” he explained, adding a big draw is that it allows the couple to meet new people.

Noting the two are mechanics – they run a mobile aircraft maintenance shop in Whitehorse – Kyle added they were able to “challenge that aspect of our brain too, piecing it together is a big puzzle.”

Looking for individual pieces of that puzzle, Kyle began researching the site last year and eventually tracked down a couple sons of one of the deceased, Robert Warren Striff Jr., as Robert and Randy Striff from Ohio.

“It’s kind of this weird, morbid fascination as to what happened,” said Sara, adding she and Kyle are avid hikers.

Private pilots, she said visiting the site was also helpful to “learn from other other people’s mistakes; it’s a good lesson.”

But likely the more rewarding aspect of their trek came after the brothers flew in to the site in a helicopter – thanks to the help of their friend Jamie Tait – and the questions it could have answered for both the couple but, more importantly, the brothers.

“When we got to the site and realized the degree to which it was untouched, it left mysteries to us,” said Kyle, so they wanted to try to put a face to the wreck.

Sara added she was nervous: “when we took off that morning, I had this sinking feeling.”

She knew the moment would be big for the brothers. “They’d been waiting 51 years for answers and in the next 30 minutes, they were going to be standing on top of that wreck.”

Kyle agreed, adding what started as an adventure grew to become an important lesson in honouring your history.

As the four hiked into the wreck, “it surprised me, there was this gravity of it that hit everybody,” Kyle said, especially for the brothers, who seemed to have a weight lifted off their shoulders.

They were able to take back mementos from the site, where they found things like a pocketknife, steel boots, a steel quarter from the 1940s and a pocket-watch.

Another one was a rifle, which held special significance to the family as the father, an avid outdoorsman, didn’t go anywhere without it, Kyle said.

“The rifle is something that the mother, who died a few years ago, up to the day she passed she wondered about it,” added Sara.

Being able to hold the same rifle again from when they had last seen it at the ages of two and five “was a really powerful moment,” she said.

Sara also came across food rations that had hardened from impact, like cinnamon rolls and muffins that still smelled sulphuric from the ashes of the wreck.

The pocket watch helped confirm the time at which they suspected the plane crashed, stopping at seven minutes after 2 p.m.

Kyle said the few reports on the crash did note that it was approximately 2:10 p.m., but to see and hold a remnant of that moment was something else.

“You get this lactic acid throughout your body knowing that this watch stopped at the second of impact,” said Sara.

Kyle added that it was “amazing that the watch survived and didn’t just crush into oblivion.

“Thank God they dug,” he laughed. 

According to some of those reports, the crash also claimed the lives of Robert Brown and David Bain. A website documenting military accidents listed that three other people on board the plane survived.

Striff, Brown and Bain served as the radio operator, pilot and co-pilot, respectively.

“In all likelihood, they may have the same questions and need to know,” said Kyle, noting that media attention might mean other impacted families could reach out as well.

Though not directly affected by this crash, the couple said they have had friends who have unfortunately passed in airplane mishaps.

Some choose not to visit the wreck, while for others, the significant emotional connection draws them in.

Regardless of why the brothers chose to go ahead and see the site, Sara said she’s grateful for being able to meet and bring them any closure they might have needed.

Kyle nodded, adding that after the death of their father, the family “was told they have to get off the base because they’re now no longer dependants of an employee of the Coast Guard.”

“It was almost as if it never happened; they were here one day and gone the next,” Sara said.

She added it would have been difficult to find surviving family of the wreck had it been from the 1930s or ’40s.

“In this situation, we could actually fill a void that was there,” she said.

The couple expects the Striff brothers might bring other family members to the site in the future as a reminder of the tragedy that occurred on that sunny Thursday in 1967.

Comments (5)

Up 2 Down 0

Sara Cameron on Nov 19, 2018 at 4:28 pm

I meant to do a thumbs up but accidentally touched the thumbs down and now it won’t let me change. Kyle and I just found this article and the comments for the first time. Thank you all, we were very happy for the brothers and family of Robert Striff, that they received the closure they had been longing for. Not to mention they became life long friends ❤️

Up 2 Down 0

Cara L Striff on Jul 4, 2018 at 6:39 am

Bobby Striff was my first cousin (my father, Davey and his father, Robert were brothers). I never got to meet Bobby because I was just 2 years old when he died but my Dad talked about him fondly and told me about that horrible crash that took his life. This story brought tears to my eyes and I'm so grateful to everyone involved who helped Robert and Randy find some closure on their father's death. Wonderful, tragic story.

Up 16 Down 3

James E. Striff on Jun 23, 2018 at 1:54 pm

I am Robert W. Striff's brother and I too have benefited from my nephews trip to the Yukon to visit the site. I am not a member of facebook so am hearing all the goings on from my son Jim Jr.
I greatly appreciate Kyle and Sara's time and effort that they have expended in their investigation of this site.

Up 11 Down 0

Aviator on Jun 23, 2018 at 9:25 am

Kyle and Sara did a great thing connecting the two brothers and their fathers final resting site. But that's the kind of people they are. A few years ago, there was some vandalism on planes at Schwatka lake. Kyle was there front and center helping fellow pilots repair the damage, unasked.
Curious what type of aircraft was involved in this incident?

Up 17 Down 0

Matt on Jun 22, 2018 at 4:07 pm

Very remote site insofar as human traffic. Well preserved if they found a rifle after all this time. Brings back memories of Eddy Hatchkiss and Mel Melisson incidents.

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