At least 19 persons have died in a Tanzanian passenger plane flying from Das es Salaam to Bukoba via Mwanza.
The ATR-42 aircraft crashed into Lake Victoria around 08:30 east African time and has been blamed on bad weather. It was attempting to land in Bukoba.
Two pilots aboard initially survived the crash and communicated with local officials from the cockpit, the prime minister says they may have since died.
Out of 43 people on board the Precision Air flight, 23 were initially rescued and moved to the hospital.
Rescuers were able to quickly get through the water to bring some of those onboard the flight to safety. The emergency workers were able to reach those inside the water– Africa’s largest lake.
The emergency workers and fishermen in the area have been using ropes to pull the ATR-42 aircraft closer to the shore – end of the Bukoba airport runway.
The plane was almost completely submerged with only the brown and green tail fin visible. Some of the plane’s body is now above the water.
Tanzania’s Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa has arrived the scene of the incident and said a comprehensive investigation would be launched to determine the full causes of the crash.
“We are still identifying the bodies, but it is highly likely that the pilots might have perished,” he said.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan has expressed her condolences to the affected families and called for calm as the rescue operation continues.
The Precision Air is Tanzania’s largest private airline and is partly owned by Kenya Airways.
