DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) – At least 19 people were killed when a passenger plane crashed into Tanzania’s Lake Victoria on Sunday while trying to land at a nearby airport, the prime minister and the airline said.
Flight PW494, operated by Precision Air, hit water during a storm and heavy rain, the Tanzanian Broadcasting Corporation (TBC) reported.
Rescuers in boats rushed to the almost completely submerged wreckage and extracted trapped passengers, local officials said.
“All Tanzanians will join us in mourning these 19 people who lost their lives,” Prime Minister Qasim Majariwa told reporters in the lakeside town of Bukoba, near the crash site.
Investigators are investigating what happened, he added.
Tanzania’s largest commercial airline, Precision Air, said in a statement that the plane departed from the commercial capital Dar es Salaam and made a “crash landing” at 08:53 (0553 GMT) while approaching Bukoba Airport.
The plane was carrying 39 passengers, including an infant, and four crew members. It initially said 26 of the 43 people on board had been rescued, but later said 24 survivors were reported by emergency services at the scene.
Witnesses told TBC they saw a plane flying erratically approaching the airport with poor visibility.
Videos and photos on social media showed the plane almost completely submerged, with only its green and brown tail visible above the waters of Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake.
Footage from broadcasters and bystanders shows a large number of residents standing along the shoreline and wading into shallow water as ropes attempt to pull the aircraft closer to shore.
Two pilots survived the crash and were in contact with rescue workers from the cockpit before reporting that their oxygen supplies were declining. Two people survived.
Precision Air has confirmed that the aircraft is an ATR42-500. French-Italian manufacturer ATR did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
First introduced nearly 40 years ago, the ATR42 is the smaller of two series of short-haul turboprop aircraft manufactured by ATR, a joint venture between Airbus (AIR.PA) and Leonardo (LDOF.MI). The last fatality was in 2017, according to the safety database aviation-safety.net.
Precision Air said, “We extend our deepest condolences to the families and friends of the passengers and crew involved in this tragic accident. The company will provide the information and assistance they need during this difficult time. I will try.”
Tanzanian President Samia Sulf Hassan called for calm.
“Sadly received the news of an accident involving a Precision Air aircraft,” she tweeted.
Additional reporting by Duncan Miriri from Nairobi and Tim Hepher from Paris Writing by Elias Biryabarema Editing by Alexandra Zavis, William Maclean, Helen Popper, Andrew Heavens and Barbara Lewis
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