RAWALPINDI: A plane crashed at the Koral Chowk on Islamabad Express Highway in Rawalpindi on Friday, reported Express News.
9:58pm
CAA Spokesperson Pervaiz George spoke to the media and said the authority has arranged a hotel in Islamabad for free stay for the relatives of the victims.
He further said that another Bhoja Air plane will arrive in Karachi at around 10:30pm and will fly to Islamabad with the relatives of the victims.
He added that the plane was in a good condition.
9:52pm
Haleem Adil Shaikh, Advisor to Sindh Chief Minister on Relief Affairs, has been at the Karachi airport all evening and has been talking to the press.
Defence Secretary Narjis Sethi told Express News that operation rooms have been established and civil administration in Islamabad has also been activated. “We are doing everything possible.”
9:46pm
Deputy Commissioner Malir has announced that a PIA flight has been arranged and will take passengers’ relatives free of cost, reported Mirza.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has expressed grief over the incident.
9:43pm
An official at Islamabad airport said that six flights coming to Islamabad were diverted earlier and landed in Lahore, but the airport has reopened and the flights will start coming back
Eight bodies have been recovered so far and there is no chance of survivors. The wreckage has spread over 1.5km, reported The Express Tribune’s Umer Draz.
A Bhoja Air flight will be leaving around 11 pm with one member from each family of those killed in the crash, reported Shaheryar Mirza.
9:35pm
Defence secretary says Islamabad airport will not be closed.
An investigation team has been formed, headed by Group Captain Mujahidul Islam, on the orders of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.
9:31pm
A man who had been at waiting at Islamabad’s Benazir Bhutto International Airport for the flight yelled “my two daughters are dead” as tears streamed down his face.
In a state of shock, he then slumped in a state of shock on the floor and sat silently as other relatives of passengers crowded around lists of those on board.
Among them was Zarina Bibi, desperate to determine whether her husband was on the Bhoja Air flight. “He called me before leaving Karachi but I don’t know if he was on this flight or not,” said Bibi, whose eyes were red from crying.
9:25pm
“This is not one bit different from what we went through, there is total chaos and there is no one here to help passengers’ families. Only two people are sitting at the desk as before. They are not able to provide a proper passenger list to the public,” Junaid Hamid, AirBlue Crash Affectees Convener, told The Express Tribune correspondent Shaheryar Mirza.
“Last time they weren’t able to give us a flight till early next morning and the passengers this time do not have any answers on when the next flight will be available,” he added.
The worst aviation tragedy on Pakistani soil came in July 2010 when an Airbus 321 passenger jet operated by Airblue crashed into hills overlooking Islamabad while coming in to land after a flight from Karachi.
All 152 people on board were killed in the accident, which occurred amid heavy rain and poor visibility.
9:21pm
Deputy DG of National Disaster Management Authority Mansoor Ahmed told Express News that the rush of the people is hampering the rescue work. “I want to request the people to let our cars reach the area so we can end the operation by tonight.”
Assistant commissioner of the area said that emergency has been declared in all hospitals of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. “Two ambulances just left the site with six bodies. Some bodies were shifted earlier,” he added and requested the people to move away from the area so that the rescue work can be done smoothly.
President Asif Ali Zardari has arranged a chartered plane for the victims’ families to reach Islamabad.
9:14pm
Bhoja Air relaunched domestic operations with a fleet of five 737s in March, according to newspaper reports, when the airline was planning to start flights connecting Karachi, Sukkur, Multan, Lahore and Islamabad.
Bhoja had been grounded in 2000 by the Civil Aviation Authorities amid financial difficulties, the reports said.
9:08pm
Express News correspondent Qamarul Munawwar reported that as all the rescue officials could not reach the site with all their equipment, the locals are helping by providing sheets to wrap the bodies.
He added that not a single body has been taken to a hospital from the site.
9:05pm
A rescue official told Express News that they were facing difficulty in carrying out the rescue operation as the bodies were strewn over a large area and there was very low visibility as there was no light.
“The only light we have is that from cellphones and from cars,” he said.
9:00pm
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that wings of the plane caught fire before it crashed. Eyewitnesses said that the plane was struck by lightening.
Ten nearby houses were destroyed, but the residents remained safe.
8:58pm
Bodies are being shifted to hospitals.
CAA rescue team has been tasked to search the black box of the plane.
Islamabad airfield has been closed till midnight.
8:50pm
Dead bodies are strewn over a large area.
CDA teams, locals and rescue officials are present on the crash site and are helping rescue efforts.
Concerned people can call at 92-51-9231453 for information.
8:46pm
An official says this cannot be termed a routine accident.
There were conflicting reports about how many people were on board the plane.
A senior defence ministry official said initial reports suggested there were 126 people on board, Civil Aviation Authority said it was carrying 121 passengers and nine crew, and the chief of Islamabad police Bani Amin told AFP from the crash site that 127 were on board.
8:41pm
“There is no chance of any survivors. It will be only a miracle. The plane is totally destroyed,” police officer Fazle Akbar told AFP from the crash site.
According to initial reports, the plane belonged to Bhoja Airlines. It was also reportedly carrying over 100 passengers from Karachi to Islamabad.
8:21pm
Saifur Rehman, an official from the police rescue team said the plane came down in Hussainabad village, about three kilometres from the main Islamabad highway.
“Fire erupted after the crash. The wreckage is on fire, the plane is completely destroyed. We have come with teams of firefighters and searchlights and more rescuers are coming,” Rehman told Geo News.
8:18pm
CAA has established a crisis cell at the Karachi airport and relatives of the passengers are asked to call at 92-21-99071384 and 92-21-99071385 for information.
8:15pm
Bhoja Air Public Relations Officer Jasir Abro said, “We want everyone to stop speculating. We’re trying to find out what happened, where, and how it happened. As soon as we find out more information about the crash the list will be made public.”
An information desk has been established on the second floor at Domestic Departures at the Karachi airport and the families of the passengers can receive information from there.
8:13pm
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani has expressed deep grief over the plane crash. He has directed the CAA to use all resources for the rescue operation, reported The Express Tribune correspondent Sumera Khan.
Group Captain Mujahidul Islam, head of Safety Investigation Board CAA, will lead an inquiry into the incident.
Two operation rooms have been set up at Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Rawalpindi and Jinnah International Airport in Karachi.
8:07pm
Rescue 1122 officials say that no one has survived the crash.
The Express Tribune correspondent Shaheryar Mirza reported that 116 people had travelled on the plane, five were reported to be infants. The flight had six crew members on board.
As many as 100 Army troops have reached the spot and have taken charge of rescue efforts.
Crash site has agricultural land and some residential plots.
According to initial reports, the plane was a Boeing 213 and belonged to Bhoja Airlines. It was also reportedly carrying over 100 passengers from Karachi to Islamabad.
7:53pm
Family members of those on board have started arriving at the airports.
Air traffic control says that they did not receive any distress call from the pilot in the moments before the crash.
7:51pm
Rescue 1122 officials say that the plane has been completed destroyed and it is being feared that there are no survivors.
A witness told Dunya News that dead bodies could be seen lying all around after the jet went down before landing.
7:48pm
Express News Islamabad correspondent Qamarul Munawwar reported that rescue vehicles are still on the roads due to the traffic. The rescue officials claim that CAA is not telling them the exact site of the incident.
7:45pm
CAA former DG Junaid Ameen, talking to Express News, said the bad weather is usually not the cause of plane crashes because planes have equipments which help in dealing with the situation. “Planes are designed to fly in bad weather.”
Air traffic controllers say that the crash happened due to bad weather and confirmed that the plane belonged to Bhoja Airlines.
Express News correspondent in Karachi, Aftab Ali, reported that five babies were among the passengers.
7:33pm
The plane took off from Karachi at 5:00pm and was supposed to land in Islamabad at 6:40pm but crashed just before touchdown, reported Geo News.
Witnessed told Dunya News that flame could be seen rising from the crash site and the fire has reportedly engulfed several buildings.
Army troops have also been moved to the area where the plane crashed.
7:28pm
Plane was supposed to fly over Jinnah Garden to approach its destination and land at the airport.
The crash site has been cordoned off by Koral police.
7:25pm
Sources say that the plane crashed in a residential area in Jinnah Garden, but it has not been confirmed.
All rescue vehicles of Islamabad and Rawalpindi have been rushed to the spot including fire tenders, but traffic jam near the crash site is hampering rescue vehicles from reaching the site.
7:20pm
CAA authorities have refrained from giving out any official statement.
This was the first flight of Bhoja Airlines after the service started.
7:17pm
It is currently raining in Rawalpindi and it being suggested that the bad weather could have been the cause of the plane crash.
According to authorities, the plane crashed 10km away from the runway of Islamabad airport, near Chaklala airbase.
Rescue officials from Islamabad and Rawalpindi, as well as the Civil Aviation Authority, have left for the crash site.
Published in The Express Tribune
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