Over 20 bodies have been recovered from the river.
Washington, United States: A US passenger aircraft, Airlines Flight 5342, collided mid-air with a US military Sikorsky H-60 helicopter around 9 pm local time on Wednesday. The flight was approaching Runway 22 at Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) when the accident occurred, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed. The flight had departed from Wichita, Kansas, earlier in the evening.
The plane had around 60 passengers and four crew members on board while the helicopter had at least three soldiers on board, CNN quotes officials as saying. According to multiple reports, the rescue team could not pull out any survivors from the water, and at least 30 people have been recovered from the river, as massive search operation continues. Officials have confirmed that there are no survivors as all on board feared dead.
Read Also: At Least 4 Killed As KSRTC Bus Falls Into Gorge In Kerala’s Idukki
More fatalities are being reported as the plane has been broken into pieces in the water. More bodies are pulling out of the river. Several agencies including US Park Police, DC Metropolitan Police Department, and the US military, were involved in search and rescue operations in Potomac River following the crash. DC Fire and EMS reported that fireboats were deployed to the scene.
As per reports, there are more bodies likely trapped in the debris of the plane submerged in the river. The flight was at an altitude of about 400 feet and a speed of approximately 140 miles per hour when the incident occurred.
Read Also: 2 Killed, 18 Injured As Plane Crashes Into Commercial Building In California
President Donald Trump said he is closely monitoring the situation. Taking to the social media platform, Trump said that the airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport and the helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time.
“It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane. This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD!!!,” the president wrote.
