TeleSUR
A plane carrying 58 passengers and four crew members crashed in a town in the interior of the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo in the early hours of Friday afternoon, sources from Guarulhos airport in that region confirmed.
According to Voepass Linhas Aéreas, the airline that owns the aircraft, it is a turboprop passenger plane, model ATR-72, which departed from Cascavel (Paraná) bound for Guarulhos (Sao Paulo). There is still no information on the victims.
According to a statement from Voepass, the company says it “used all means to support those involved. There is still no confirmation of how the accident occurred or the current situation of those on board.”
Military Police said they received the call at 13:28 (16:28 UTC) on Rua João Edueta, near the Miguel Melhado de Campos highway (SP-324), and sent teams to the scene. According to the Municipality of Vinhedo, the plane was located in the Recanto Florido residential condominium.
Hospitals in Vinhedo and Valinhos (both in the state of Sao Paulo) are being mobilized to receive possible injured people. Firefighters, Civil Protection and Military Police are on the scene.
For its part, the management of Cascavel Regional Airport reported that it is awaiting information from the airline, “which, for the moment, is the only organization that has official information.”
The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop commercial airliner for regional and short-haul travel built in France and Italy by the ATR company. It has a maximum capacity of 78 seats and is crewed by two people.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, upon being informed of the events at a public event, asked for a minute of silence: “I have to be the bearer of very bad news and I want to ask everyone to stand up and observe a minute of silence because a plane has just crashed in the city of Vinhedo, in São Paulo, with 58 passengers and 4 crew members and it seems that everyone died,” Lula told those present.
The video with the statement was published by the president on social media, where he also offered his solidarity to the families and friends of the victims.
The Nicaraguan government immediately expressed its solidarity with the Brazilian people and government over the tragic events.
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