A plane caught fire after going off the runway at a South Korean airport, killing at least 47 people on board, emergency services said. The fire engulfed the plane carrying 181 people when it went off the runway just after landing and hit a fence. The emergency office said the landing gear appeared to have malfunctioned.
The national fire agency said the fire was almost out but authorities were still trying to extract passengers from the Jeju Air plane at the airport in the southern city of Muan.
The agency said at least 47 people died in the fire. Rescuers extracted two people, a passenger and a crew member. The agency said it deployed 32 fire trucks and several helicopters to contain the fire.
According to the CNN network, authorities expect the provisional toll to increase.
Footage of the accident broadcast by television channel YTN showed the Jeju Air plane skidding on the runway, apparently with its landing gear still closed, and colliding head-on with a concrete wall at the periphery of the installation. The transport ministry said the incident occurred at 9:03 a.m. local time.
Local television channels broadcast images showing thick cushions of black smoke escaping from the plane engulfed in flames.
Video of the landing shows that the plane's landing gear did not deploy.
Authorities were ordered to use all available resources to rescue passengers and crew, according to emergency services.
– With information from CNN and Yonhap Agency
