◀ anchor ▶
A passenger plane carrying 132 people crashed into a mountain in southern China this afternoon.
As the fire spread along with the fall, authorities dispatched rescue teams, but the exact number of casualties is still unknown.
Correspondent Jo Hee-hyeong from Beijing covered the story.
◀ Report ▶
Red flames rise above the ridge with white smoke.
The blazing fire spreads as quickly as it engulfs the entire mountain.
The mountain trail is littered with debris believed to be broken airplane wings.
At around 2:20 pm local time, a Boeing 737 airliner of China Eastern Airlines crashed while passing through the Guangxi Autonomous Region in southern China.
The plane had 132 people on board, including 123 passengers and 9 crew members.
The exact number of casualties is still unknown.
Chinese state media CCTV reported that 1,000 rescue teams and fire brigade were dispatched to the accident site.
[중국 관영매체 CCTV]
“President Xi Jinping has ordered that emergency measures be implemented immediately in the event of an accident, and that all efforts will be made to carry out rescue operations.”
Authorities are investigating the exact cause of the accident, including the cause of the fall.
The plane was previously scheduled to depart from Kunming, Yunnan, southern China, at around 1:15 pm and arrive in Guangzhou at around 3 pm.
On China’s social media Weibo, video of an airplane crashing along with the news of the accident and a video of a wildfire spreading along with the accident are being shared.
Posts hoping that there will be no casualties are also coming up one after another.
In China, in 2010, a passenger plane crashed in Yichun, Heilongjiang Province, killing 42 people.
This is Jo Hee-hyung from MBC News.
Video coverage: Farewell (Beijing) / Video editing: Farewell (Beijing) Nayeon Kwon
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