TORONTO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th January, 2020) Dozens of Canadian students and faculty members perished in the Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 on route from Tehran to Kiev, university officials said.
The University of Windsor, via a statement on Twitter, said that the devastating plane crash in Iran has taken the life of at least 5 members of the university.
The University of Western Ontario, in a statement, reported the loss of 4 community members.
In a written statement, the University of Alberta President and Vice-Chancellor, David H. Turpin, said that "several members of our University of Alberta community died in last night's tragic airplane crash."
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has also confirmed the death of 4 University of Toronto students.
In total, over a dozen universities and other educational institutions, including the University of Waterloo, University of Guelph, and McMaster University reported the loss of life among their community members.
The air disaster in Iran, also impacted school boards in and around the Greater Toronto Area.
In a written statement, the Toronto District School board said, "we are heartbroken to learn that a number of TDSB students and their family members, along with a family member of at least one of our employees are among those who lost their lives in the crash of the Ukraine International Airlines flight in Iran yesterday evening."
The York District School Board also stated that they too have been directly impacted by the air disaster in Iran.
The air disaster claimed the lives of several esteemed professors and several Ph.D students, including Marzieh (Mari) Foroutan and Mansour Esnaashary Esfahani from the University of Waterloo.
On Wednesday, Isabelle Mailloux Pulkinghorn, the communications officer of the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) told Sputnik that at least three victims of the crash of the Ukraine International Airlines' plane in Tehran were students of the university.
Many of the faculty members and students were returning back to Canada after the winter break at University. UIA is a popular and cheap option amongst Canadian travelers to Iran, who have few alternatives and no direct flights connecting the two countries.
UIA Flight 752 crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport in the early Wednesday hours claiming the lives of all 167 passengers, including 63 Canadians.
