Twenty three dead in plane crash in Goma, DR Congo

Goma, DR Congo | AFP | At least 23 bodies were recovered on Sunday after a small plane believed to have been carrying 19 passengers and crew crashed on takeoff into a densely populated area of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

An official at Goma airport, Richard Mangolopa, told AFP no survivors were expected.

“A number of bodies have just been recovered. The (rescue) teams are continuing to search,” added Goma mayor Timothee Muissa Kiesse.

The Dornier-228 aircraft had been headed for Beni, 350 kilometres (220 miles) north of Goma when it went down in a residential area near Goma airport.

“There were at least 17 passengers on board. It took off around 9-9.10 am (0700 GMT),” Busy Bee airline staff member Heritier Said Mamadou said.

Busy Bee, a recent company, has three planes serving routes in North Kivu province.

One of the company’s maintenance workers at the site quoted by news site actualite.cd blamed a “technical problem”.

It was not yet known if there were any casualties on the ground.