Seoul - Saba:
South Korean state media on Sunday said the death toll from the crash of the ill-fated passenger plane has risen to 120 people.
"The death toll from the passenger plane crash at Muan Airport has risen to 120 people," Yonhap said, noting that emergency and rescue forces rescued two passengers from the plane that had 181 people on board.
"The authorities have confirmed the deaths of 120 people in the accident, all of whom were found in the tail of the plane - and the number of victims is likely to increase. Two people have been rescued so far. The total number of casualties has not yet been disclosed by the authorities," the official news agency added.
According to the agency, the plane returning from Bangkok was carrying 181 people, including six crew members. Most of the passengers were Koreans, except for two Thais.
The accident caused severe damage to the plane, which led to a fire.
Yonhap explained that the authorities "put out the fire after 43 minutes and said that search and rescue operations are underway at the crash site.
About 80 firefighters have been dispatched to the site. Officials suspect that a failure in the landing gear, possibly due to a collision with birds, is the cause of the accident. They have launched an on-site investigation to determine the exact cause.”
Interim President Choi Sang-mok, deputy prime minister for economic affairs, ordered officials to make all-out efforts for rescue operations. He is on his way to the crash site, officials said.
The presidential office said it will hold an emergency meeting of senior officials at 11:30 a.m. to discuss the government’s response to the plane crash. The meeting will be chaired by Chief of the Presidential Secretariat Chung Jin-seok.
Acting National Police Agency Commissioner General Lee Ho-young also ordered officials to mobilize all resources available and cooperate with all the concerned agencies in order to help in rescue efforts.
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