At least 21 killed in Medan plane crash

The Jakarta Post, Medan, Tue, June 30 2015


Police and rescue workers have evacuated at least 21 bodies from the crash site of a C-130 Hercules aircraft on Jl. Jamin Ginting in Medan, North Sumatra, according to North Sumatra Provincial Police Chief Insp. Gen. Hadi Sutedjo.

“According to the temporary data, at least 21 people were killed in the accident,” Eko told The Jakarta Post at the crash site on Tuesday.

All dead and injured victims had been evacuated to Adam Malik General Hospital in Tuntungan, he said, adding that rescue workers were still working to search for other victims believed to be buried under the rubble of houses flattened by the Air Force aircraft.

Based on the flight’s manifest, there were 50 passengers, including crew members, aboard the aircraft, which was heading from Medan to Tanjungpinang in Riau Islands to supply logistics.

The aircraft crashed into a residential area in Simalingkar, Medan Tuntungan District, only two minutes after it took off from Suwondo airbase at 12:08 p.m.

Eko declined to specify the number of civilians killed in the accident. “We don’t know the number of civilian victims killed in the accident. The evacuation is still underway,” he said



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