China News Service reported on May 23rd that on the afternoon of the 22nd local time, a passenger plane carrying about 100 people crashed near a residential area in the southern city of Karachi, Pakistan. According to Pakistan ’s “Dawn News”, citing local health officials, the crash has killed 97 people and two others have survived. According to Agence France-Presse, 80 bodies have been found at the scene of the accident, and the death toll may increase further.
On May 22, local time, Karachi, Pakistan, volunteers carried a wounded out of the ruins at the scene of the plane crash.
According to reports, on the afternoon of the 22nd, a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) A320 passenger plane took off from Lahore to Karachi, but while preparing to land, it crashed in a residential area not far from Karachi Jinna International Airport. The smoke billowed. "Dawn News" said the accident caused 11 people on the ground to be injured. Witnesses said the plane caught fire in the air before it crashed.
PIA spokesman Abdullah Hafez said the aircraft carried 91 passengers and 8 crew members. Hafez confirmed that the passenger pilot had reported a technical failure to the airport control center before the crash.
On the other hand, local health official Meeran Yousuf confirmed that two passengers survived and were taken to the hospital. One of them had 35% of burns in the whole body, and the other had four fractures. In addition, Yusef also said that so far, 19 victims have been identified.
Agence France-Presse reported that Airbus subsequently stated in a statement that the wrecked aircraft was first put into service in 2004 and was acquired by PIA in 2014 with a flight time of approximately 47,100 hours.
After the accident, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted: "I am shocked and saddened by the crash of Pakistan International Airlines. I contacted PIA CEO Arshad Malik (Arshad Malik) He has already traveled to Karachi and contacted the local rescue team, which is currently the top priority. The investigation will start immediately. I express my prayers and condolences to the family of the deceased. "
Pakistan ’s military spokesman General Bajwa said that in accordance with the instructions of Prime Minister Imran Khan, all emergency services and resources have been mobilized and evacuation is in progress.