At least 19 dead as Tanzania passenger plane crashes into Lake Victoria
- Flight PW494, carrying 43 people, ‘crash-landed’ into the lake as it was approaching the lakeside city of Bukoba
- Plane encountered problems and bad weather, says Kagera province police commander William Mwampaghale, adding rescue work is ongoing
At least 19 people were killed when a plane operated by Tanzania’s Precision Air crash-landed into Lake Victoria on approach to the lakeside city of Bukoba, the country’s prime minister said on Sunday.
“All Tanzanians join you in mourning these 19 people … who have lost their lives,” Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa told a crowd after arriving at Bukoba Airport, where the flight had been scheduled to land from financial capital Dar es Salaam.
Flight PW494 “crash-landed” into the lake as it was approaching the lakeside city of Bukoba, Precision Air added.
Photos showed the plane, which was headed to Bukoba Airport, mostly submerged in the lake. Precision Air is Tanzania’s largest privately owned airline.
“We have managed to save quite a number of people,” Kagera province police commander William Mwampaghale told journalists. “When the aircraft was about 100 metres (328 feet) mid-air, it encountered problems and bad weather. It was raining and the plane plunged into the water.”
Mwampaghale said the rescue efforts were continuing.
The cause of the crash was not immediately clear, but the Tanzania Broadcasting Corporation (TBC) said the incident took place amid storms and heavy rains.
A witness told TBC he saw the plane flying unsteadily as it approached the airport in poor visibility conditions, saying it took a turn for the airport but missed and went into the lake.