By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: AP.
The death toll from a plane crash at Muan International Airport in South Korea has risen to 122, with only two survivors according to the South Jeolla Fire Service.
Most of the remaining passengers and crew are presumed dead, according to the fire service.
Among those killed, 54 are male and 57 are female, while the gender of 11 remains undetermined, according to the authorities.
The number of survivors remains at two – both crew members, one male and one female – according to the on-site fire service team.
The Jeju Air jetliner was carrying 181 passengers and crew when it crashed Sunday morning.
Footage of the crash aired by YTN television showed the Jeju Air plane skidding across the airstrip, apparently with its landing gear still closed, and colliding head-on with a concrete wall on the outskirts of the facility. Other local TV stations aired footage showing thick pillows of black smoke billowing from the plane engulfed with flames.
Lee Jeong-hyeon, chief of the Muan fire station, told a televised briefing that rescue workers are continuing to search for bodies scattered by the crash impact. The plane was completely destroyed, with only the tail assembly remaining recognizable among the wreckage, he said.
Workers were looking into various possibilities about what caused the crash, including whether the aircraft was struck by birds that caused mechanical problems, Lee said.
Jeju Air in a statement expressed its “deep apology” over the crash and said it will do its “utmost to manage the aftermath of the accident.”
In a televised news conference, Kim E-bae, Jeju Air’s president, deeply bowed with other senior company officials as he apologized to bereaved families and said he feels “full responsibility” for the incident. Kim said the company hadn’t identified any mechanical problems in the aircraft following regular checkups and that he would wait for the results of government investigations into the cause of the incident.
Boeing has extended its condolences to those who lost loved ones in Sunday’s air crash in South Korea and said it was in contact with the carrier Jeju Air.
Jeju Air flight 2216 from Bangkok, which is listed on flight tracking sites as a Boeing 737-800, crashed on Sunday morning at Muan International Airport.
“We are in contact with Jeju Air regarding Flight 2216 and stand ready to support them,” Boeing said in a short statement posted to its X account.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost loved ones and our thoughts remain with the passengers and crew, “the company added.
With inputs from various news agencies.