At Least 68 Dead In Plane Crash, Moments Before Disaster Captured On Video

An aircraft carrying 72 people crashed Sunday in Nepal, leaving at least 68 people dead in the country’s deadliest plane crash in 30 years and the third-deadliest According to the Aviation Safety Network. 

The Yeti Airlines flight was traveling from Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, to Pokhara, a city in the central part of the country where the crash occurred. They are approximately 125 miles apart, and can be reached in 25 minutes by plane. Video This video shows the turboprop regional aircraft flying low and seeming to lose control seconds before the accident. The cause of the crash is still unclear, according to the nation’s aviation authorities. 

“By the time I was there the crash site was already crowded,” One resident told BBC News. “There was huge smoke coming from the flames of the plane. And then helicopters came over in no time. The pilot tried his best to not hit civilization or any home. There was a small space right beside the Seti River and the flight hit the ground in that small space,” She added. 

72 people were carried by the ATR 72-500 aircraft, including four crew members, five Indians and four Russias, as well as one French passenger, one person, one Argentinian and one Australian.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, Press release After receiving information about a crash, two helicopters were immediately dispatched to assist in search and rescue. The Himalayan Rescue Association, police and the Nepal Army were all part of the search and rescue team. At the time the press release was issued, there were 68 bodies. According to one witness, he heard the wreckage cries for help. According The Associated Press. 

“The flames were so hot that we couldn’t go near the wreckage. I heard a man crying for help, but because of the flames and smoke we couldn’t help him,” The witness stated.

Pokhara Airport, the flight’s intended destination, opened just 14 days ago. This was the second fatality in the Himalayan nation’s past year. A plane carrying 22 people hit a Himalayan mountainside in MayAll aboard were killed. 

“I am speechless about the crash,” Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari In a Twitter statement “I convey my heartfelt condolences to the passengers and the crew members who lost their lives and express my deep sympathy for the family members for their losses.”

Since 2013, all Nepalese airlines are banned from operating in the European Union. This is due to a lack of safety standards. According to the AP, there have been 42 fatalities in plane crashes in Nepal since 1946. The topography of Nepal is one potential reason, with eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains, Together With rapid weather changes, and an aging aircraft.