At least 28 people were killed when a Jeju Air passenger plane crashed at a South Korean airport on Sunday due to landing gear failure.
The plane, which was headed from Bangkok to Muan, had a problem with its landing gear, veered off the runway, hit a fence and burst into flames, the Associated Press reported. reportedquoting local reports. Officials said the fire was almost extinguished and work was still underway to unload passengers from the plane at Muan International Airport.
The Boeing 737-800 was believed to have 175 passengers and six crew members on board. South Korean media reported that at least 28 people were killed, according to the Associated Press. The Muan Fire Department told The Associated Press that it could not immediately confirm a causal relationship, but said at least two people, a crew member and a passenger, had been removed from the scene.
Several helicopters and 32 fire engines were reportedly called in to douse the blaze.
According to the New York Times (NYT), 23 bodies were found, according to Lee Sung-sil, an official at the Muan Fire Department. reported.
“We are trying to find more casualties,” he said. (Related: Plane crashes into Arizona airport fence, hits car, kills 5 people).
A video circulating on social media shows the plane skidding across the ground as if it had hit a fence, before quickly bursting into flames. Debris can be seen flying when the aircraft made contact with the fence.
BREAKING: Video shows the crash of Jeju Air Flight 2216 in South Korea. 181 people on board pic.twitter.com/9rQUC0Yxt8
— BNO News (@BNONews) December 29, 2024
Additional video shows large black smoke filling the air around the crash site.
A plane with 181 people on board crashed in South Korea.
Initial footage from the crash site of South Korean Jeju Air Flight 2216 shows 181 people on board, with 23 deaths reported so far. pic.twitter.com/K3ajezxvwh
— Zamzam News (@zamzamafg) December 29, 2024
Amid South Korea's political crisis, Vice Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, who is acting as president, has instructed the government to mobilize all available personnel and equipment to rescue those involved in the crash, the NYT reported.
The incident occurred days after an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane crashed, killing 38 people and leaving 29 survivors. According to CBS News.
