Rescue workers in Colombia are searching for four people who are missing after a military plane crashed in the south of the country. Sixty-six members of the Colombian security forces were killed on Monday, when the Hercules C-130 transport plane came down shortly after take-off near Colombia's border with Peru.
Locals were first to the scene, pulling out dozens of injured survivors from the burning wreckage and ferrying them to hospitals on the back of their motorbikes. An investigation is under way to determine the cause of the accident.
A total of 128 people were on board the transport plane, which was headed from the town of Puerto Leguízamo to Puerto Asís. In a series of posts on social media, Colombian President Gustavo Petro appeared to blame antiquated military hardware for the accident. He wrote, This piece of scrap metal was bought in 2020 and came down, let's ask why.
He further mentioned bureaucratic problems that have stalled his plans to modernize the armed forces' equipment and aircraft. I will allow no further delays, the lives of our young people are at stake, he added.
Eyewitness accounts indicated the plane lost height shortly after take-off, leading to a loud explosion and smoke rising from the crash site. Colombia's defense minister clarified that the sounds during the crash could be attributed to ammunition on board igniting in the flames, and there is no indication of an attack from armed groups in the region.
The crash is notably the second deadly incident involving a Hercules C-130 within two months, following a separate incident in Bolivia that resulted in 24 deaths when a similar aircraft crashed while carrying a shipment of banknotes.
Locals were first to the scene, pulling out dozens of injured survivors from the burning wreckage and ferrying them to hospitals on the back of their motorbikes. An investigation is under way to determine the cause of the accident.
A total of 128 people were on board the transport plane, which was headed from the town of Puerto Leguízamo to Puerto Asís. In a series of posts on social media, Colombian President Gustavo Petro appeared to blame antiquated military hardware for the accident. He wrote, This piece of scrap metal was bought in 2020 and came down, let's ask why.
He further mentioned bureaucratic problems that have stalled his plans to modernize the armed forces' equipment and aircraft. I will allow no further delays, the lives of our young people are at stake, he added.
Eyewitness accounts indicated the plane lost height shortly after take-off, leading to a loud explosion and smoke rising from the crash site. Colombia's defense minister clarified that the sounds during the crash could be attributed to ammunition on board igniting in the flames, and there is no indication of an attack from armed groups in the region.
The crash is notably the second deadly incident involving a Hercules C-130 within two months, following a separate incident in Bolivia that resulted in 24 deaths when a similar aircraft crashed while carrying a shipment of banknotes.
