At least 19 people are dead after a flight carrying 43 people crashed into Lake Victoria in Tanzania. The aircraft was attempting to reach a nearby airport in Tanzania on Sunday. The plane was operated by the Tanzanian commercial airline company Precision Air. Local officials said bad weather at the local was the cause of the accident. The area had been under heavy rainfall and strong winds at the time.
Rescuers have recovered all bodies from the airplane, The country’s Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa told reporters in Bukoba.
“We’re starting to pull out the luggage and personal items from the aircraft. A team of doctors and security agencies has started the process of identifying the dead and notifying the families,” Majaliwa said.
As CNN reported, the number of survivors down to 24 in an updated statement on Sunday evening. The plane was flying with 39 passengers and four crew members.
“Precision Air extends its deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the passenger and crew involved in this tragic incident. The company will strive to provide them with information and whatever assistance they will require in their difficult time,” the airline said.
“The names of passengers and crew on board the aircraft will not be released until all next-of-kin have been notified,” it added.
Social Media
Video circulating on social media shows the aircraft submerged in the water. In the video, emergency responders coordinate rescue efforts from nearby boats.
The aircraft had departed from Tanzania’s commercial capital of Dar es Salaam around 6 a.m. to the town of Bukoba. “But at 8.53 a.m. our Operations Control Center got a report that that aircraft had not arrived,” he said in a televised statement.
The accident happened on the final approach to the airport. Its runway begins right next to Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest freshwater lake.
Precision Air has opened a Crisis Management Center. The airline is establishing information areas in Bukoba and Dar es Salaam to communicate with the families of the passengers.