Turkish cargo plane crashes into village while residents sleep, kills 37
A crash involving a Turkish cargo aircraft has claimed no fewer than 37 lives, Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations has said.
The crash occurred about two kilometers away from the airport, at a village in Kyrgyzstan, around 7:18 a.m. local time.
Reports say the aircraft, Boeing 747 TC-MCL operated by ACT Airlines, crashed as it landed in fog at Manas airport.
It reportedly came down on the village of Dacha-Suu, an area popular for holiday homes.
The crash resulted in the destruction of at least 15 buildings, with a number of children among the dead.
“I woke up because of a bright red light outside. I couldn’t understand what was happening,” BBC quotes a witness, Baktygul Kurbatova as saying.
“It turns out the ceiling and the walls were crashing on us. I was so scared but I managed to cover my son’s face with my hands so that debris would not fall on him.”
At least four people were said to be on board the plane when it crashed. A number of people have been taken to hospital with injuries, with fears the death toll could rise.
Boeing 747 TC-MCL was manufactured in 2003.
Scroll for photos from the crash:
