A cargo plane attempting to land at Kyrgyzstan’s main airport in thick fog crashed in a populated area Monday, leaving at least 32 people dead, AFP reported.
The majority of the dead are from the nearby village of Dacha-Suu where the plane – a Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul from Hong Kong via Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek – crashed at around 7.30am local time, Muhammed Svarov, a spokesman for the country’s emergency services ministry told AFP.
The total number of dead “could be bigger” Mr Svarov said, adding that authorities had launched a huge search and rescue operation.
At least four pilots on the flight were among the dead, the emergency services ministry said, with one pilot’s body yet to be found.
Around 43 houses were damaged by the crash, according to the emergency services ministry, which said that the accident sparked fires that spread, but have now been localised.
“The plane crashed into the houses, it killed entire families,” one eyewitness told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.