At least 62 dead after South Korean jet carrying 181 people crashes at airport

CNN
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At least 62 people were killed when a passenger plane crashed at an airport in southwestern South Korea, the local fire department told CNN.

Two people were rescued from the scene of the accident.

Jeju Air flight 7C 2216 from Bangkok was carrying 175 passengers and six crew members when the disaster struck at the airport in Muan County just after 10 p.m. 9 local time Sunday (7 p.m. ET Saturday). The crash was caused by a landing gear malfunction, officials said.

Footage of Sunday’s crash, broadcast by several South Korean news outlets, showed the plane skidding on its belly at high speed, skidding over the edge of the runway and hitting an embankment before bursting into flames.

Neither the rear nor the front landing gear were visible in the footage – broadcast by networks including YTN, JTBC and MBC – as smoke poured from the back of the gliding aircraft.

The plane then smashes into a raised embankment at the end of the runway and erupts in a huge fireball.

Firefighters were later seen using water cannons to extinguish the flaming wreckage of the plane, which was listed as a Boeing 737-800 on flight tracking site FlightAware. Several parts of the plane were also seen scattered across the runway.

The victims include 25 men and 37 women, according to the South Jeolla Fire Service.

A fire service official who spoke to CNN said the plane had been “almost completely destroyed” by fire.

Two Thai nationals were among those on board, according to South Korea’s Land Ministry.

Officers from South Korea’s Incident Investigation Committee arrived at the scene at 10:10 a.m. (8:10 p.m. EST Saturday) and is investigating the cause of the accident, according to the Department of Agriculture.

All flights to Muan International Airport have been canceled, according to the Korea Airports Corporation.

South Korea’s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, has directed emergency personnel to mobilize “all available” equipment and personnel to respond to the crash, according to the press release from the Ministry of Interior and Security.

The tragedy comes just two days into Choi’s term as acting president, the latest chapter in a time of political chaos in South Korea.

The country’s current president, Yoon Suk Yeol, was stripped of his powers by parliament two weeks ago following a short-lived martial law that threw the country into political disarray. He is currently suspended while a high court decides his fate.

Han Duck-soo, the man who stepped in to replace Yoon as acting president, was impeached by parliament on Friday, meaning Choi – the finance minister and deputy prime minister – stepped in for him.