At least 124 passengers have been killed after a plane crashed while landing at an airport in South Korea.
The Jeju Air flight from Bangkok was carrying 181 people on board when it left the runway and smashed into a wall before bursting into flames at Muan International Airport, 288 miles from Seoul. There were six members of cabin crew onboard the flight, with reports that two survivors pulled from the wreckage were both flight crew.
The National Fire Agency confirmed this morning that it has recovered 124 bodies from the site of the crash, saying 54 are identified as male and 57 as female, with a further 13 unable to be gendered. A huge recovery operation is underway, with 1,562 people deployed to help, including 490 fire department employees and 455 police officers.
South Korea’s Acting President Choi Sang-mok has declared a special disaster zone in Muan in response to the tragedy which makes central government funding available to local government and victims. In a presidential office statement, Choi said: “We have a grave situation where a great loss of life ocurred after a plane went off the runway in Muan airport this morning.
“I express my deepest condolences to the many victims in the incident. I will do all I can for the injured to quickly recover. I give my condolences to the victims and give my sincere regards to the bereaved families.”
Boeing, who manufactured the 737-800 aircraft involved in the crash, has offered its condolences and said it is in touch with Jeju Air following the crash. The fire department have said a combination of a bird strike and bad weather is the likely cause of the crash, however an investigation has been launched to determine the exact cause.
Muan fire department chief Lee Jeong-hyun told a televised briefing the tail section of the plane appears intact but “one cannot recognise the shape of the rest of the plane”.
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