Killed in the crash were two top figures in the security apparatus of the authoritarian Lao government: the deputy prime minister, Douangchay Phichit, and Thongbane Sengaphone, the minister of public security, according to two Lao diplomats.
The governor of Vientiane province was also killed in the crash.
The Lao news agency posted photos to a web site Saturday showing the mangled wreckage of the plane, a Russian-made Antonov AN-74TK300.
The news agency, citing a statement from the prime minister’s office, said it was a Laotian Air Force aircraft and it had crashed in Nadi village, west of the Xiangkhouang airport and not far from a major archeological site of prehistoric carved stone vessels, the Plain of Jars.
The authorities were "helping to rescue the survivors," the news agency said, without offering details on the number of people killed.
The plane was traveling from the capital, Vientiane, to the mountainous northeastern province of Xiangkhouang, where the officials were due to attend a military ceremony.
State television in Laos showed footage of rescue workers recovering debris from the aircraft, which appeared to have crashed in a jungle-covered area.
A news presenter said the crash occurred at around 7 a.m. "The cause of the plane crash is still unknown," the presenter said.
A Lao Facebook page showed images of thick black smoke rising up near what appeared to be an airport runway. The images could not be independently confirmed.
The crash was the second in Laos in the last year. Last October 49 people were killed when a Lao Airlines flight crashed in the south of the country.
The Foreign Ministry in neighboring Thailand said it "received reports" about the crash.
"There were about 20 passengers on board of which most were of high stature," said Sek Wannamethee, a spokesman for the Thai Foreign Ministry.
Source : Tempo
0 komentar:
Post a Comment