Listeners across Quebec woke up to heartbreaking news after popular radio host Gabriel Jasmin died in a helicopter crash over the weekend. Jasmin, a recognizable voice on Sherbrooke station 106.1 Énergie, was on board a private sightseeing flight with his extended family when the aircraft went down south of Montreal.
The flight took off around 2:30 p.m. on Saturday in Sainte-Brigide-d’Iberville, near Rang des Écossais off Highway 10. Jasmin was joining his partner’s mother, Chantal Raymond, to celebrate her birthday, along with her son, Loucas Perreault. What started as an exciting gift turned fatal shortly after the chopper cleared the treetops.
At the controls was 50-year-old Suzanne Jutras, a veteran pilot who regularly flew tours at regional festivals and private gatherings. Jutras was well regarded among local aviators for her extensive flight experience. Witnesses reported that the helicopter ran into difficulty shortly after takeoff before coming down hard in an agricultural field.
The impact ignited a fire that destroyed the aircraft before emergency crews could reach the field. Police officers with the Sûreté du Québec and local firefighters arrived quickly, but all four occupants were pronounced dead at the scene. Ground onlookers, including Jasmin’s partner Océane Perreault, witnessed the crash sequence from nearby.
Jasmin was a beloved figure at 106.1 Énergie, where colleagues remembered him for his humor, energy, and warm personality. Station parent company Bell Media offered psychological support services for team members grieving the sudden loss. Beyond his work on the airwaves, Jasmin was a devoted father who leaves behind a young daughter with Océane.
Tributes poured in from across the region as word of the crash spread through social media and local news. Community members expressed deep sympathy for Océane Perreault, who lost her partner, her mother, and her brother in a single instant. Local agricultural groups also extended condolences to the family of pilot Suzanne Jutras, whose partner farms in the area.
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada have taken charge of the investigation to figure out why the chopper went down. Field investigators gathered wreckage samples and interviewed witnesses to reconstruct the final moments of the flight. As officials work to find answers, a devastated community mourns four lives cut short on a bright autumn afternoon.
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