Thursday, October 13, 2011

Airlines PNG Dash 8 plane carrying 32 crashes in Papua New Guinea

A plane carrying dozens passengers has crashed in Papua New Guinea, killing some of those on board.

An Airlines PNG Dash 8 crashed about 6:00pm (AEDT) on Thursday while flying from Lae to Madang, on the country's north coast.

The Accident Investigation Commission (AIC) said there were 32 people on board.

Sid O'Toole from the AIC says the plane went down over land about 20 kilometres south of Madang.

"There were reports of fire and there have been some fatalities," he said.

Mr O'Toole says there are also survivors but it is not clear how many.

He says police and ambulances have reached the crash site and investigators will be travelling there tomorrow.

Residents in Madang say there was a violent storm in the area at the time of the crash.

Consular staff at the Australian High Commission are trying to determine if there were any Australians on board.

http://www.abc.net.au

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