At least 176 people have been killed and dozens more are presumed dead after a deadly plane crash in South Korea.
A plane with malfunctioning landing gear veered off the runway, hit a fence and caught fire Sunday at South Korea’s Muan International Airport, according to the emergency office and local media.
The National Fire Agency says the 175 passengers and six crew aboard the plane are now presumed dead except two survivors, who have been rescued alive and have mid to severe level injuries.
It has confirmed the deaths of 176 people, with 83 victims identified as female and 82 as male.
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At least 176 people confirmed dead
The death toll from the Jeju Air plane crash in South Korea has risen, with officials confirming at least 176 people have been killed.
The National Fire Agency said 83 victims have been identified as women, 82 as men and there are 11 others whose genders weren’t immediately identifiable.
Two survivors pulled from the crash by emergency workers are conscious and not in life-threatening condition, health officials said.
South Korea plane crash – in pictures
Firefighters and rescue teams are continuing to recover bodies from the wreckage.
Here are some pictures of the aftermath of the fatal crash.
What we know about the deadly plane crash so far
A plane with malfunctioning landing gear veered off the runway, hit a fence and caught fire Sunday at South Korea’s Muan International Airport, according to the emergency office and local media.
Investigators are looking into bird strikes and weather conditions as possible factors, Lee said.
The control tower issued a bird strike warning and shortly afterward the pilots declared mayday, a transport ministry official said. They did not specify whether the flight said it struck any birds.
Here is what we know so far:
- At least 174 people have been killed and dozens more are presumed dead.
- 77 victims have been identified as female and 79 male.
- The National Fire Agency says the 175 passengers and six crew aboard the plane are now presumed dead except two survivors, who have been rescued alive and have mid to severe level injuries.
- Both survivors, a man and a woman, are crew members, Muan fire chief Lee Jeong-hyeon told a briefing. The pair, aged in their 20s, were reportedly at the back of the plane at the time of the crash.
- The plane was a Jeju Air flight returning from Bangkok to Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province, about 288 kilometers away from Seoul.
- The plane was completely destroyed, with only the tail assembly remaining recognisable among the wreckage, Lee said.
Death toll rises to 167
The death toll from a plane crash in South Korea has risen to 167, officials have said.
The National Fire Agency said rescuers raced to pull people from the Jeju Air passenger plane carrying 181 people at the airport in the town of Muan, about 290 kilometers (180 miles) south of Seoul.
The Transport Ministry said the plane was a 15-year-old Boeing 737-800 jet that was returning from Bangkok and that the crash happened at 9:03 a.m. local time.
At least 167 people — 79 men, 77 women and 11 others whose genders weren’t immediately identifiable — died in the fire, the fire agency said. The death toll is expected to rise further as the rest of the people aboard the plane remain missing about six hours after the incident.
Emergency workers pulled out two people, both crew members, to safety, and local health officials said they remain conscious.