Scores of people were killed on Sunday when a passenger jet crash-landed at an airport in southwestern South Korea, with the aircraft careening down the runway on its belly before bursting into flames.
At least 122 people have been confirmed dead so far, according to the local fire department.
Two people, both crew members, were pulled alive from the crash site however rescuers have warned there is little hope of finding further survivors.
Jeju Air flight 7C 2216 from Bangkok was carrying 175 passengers and six crew when disaster struck at the airport in Muan county, just after 9 a.m. local time Sunday (7 p.m. ET Saturday). The accident was caused by a landing gear malfunction, officials said.
Footage of Sunday’s crash broadcast by multiple South Korean news outlets showed the plane sliding on its belly at high speed, hitting an earthen embankment and erupting in a fireball.
Neither the back nor front landing gear was visible in the footage – broadcast by networks including YTN, JTBC and MBC – as smoke poured from the back of the sliding aircraft.
Firefighters were later seen using water cannons to extinguish the blazing wreckage of the aircraft, which was listed as a Boeing 737-800 on flight-tracking site FlightAware. Several parts of the aircraft were also seen strewn across the runway.
The victims include 54 males, 57 females, and 11 people whose gender could not be determined, according to the South Jeolla Fire Service. Both of the survivors were crew members, one male and one female, according to the rescue team.
Two Thai nationals were among those on board, according to the South Korean Land Ministry, which said officers from the national Incident Investigation Committee had arrived to look into what caused the accident.
Rescue workers will search for the “black box” flight data recorders after recovering the bodies of the remaining victims, the Transport Ministry said in a briefing. The recorders offer aviation safety investigators critical facts when piecing together what happened after an incident.
More than 700 personnel from the police, military, and coast guard have been mobilized for on-site response efforts, the ministry added.
South Korea’s acting president said the site of Sunday’s plane crash has been declared a special disaster zone as he vowed a full investigation into what caused the deadly disaster.
“We will concentrate all resources on recovery and support for the victims. All necessary resources are being mobilized, and a special disaster zone has been declared,” Choi Sang-mok said in a statement.
Choi, who travelled to the crash site on Sunday, extended his “heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families” and pledged to make every effort to manage the aftermath of the incident and prevent similar accidents in future.
The tragedy comes only two days into Choi’s acting presidency, the latest chapter in a time of political chaos in South Korea.
The country’s current president, Yoon Suk Yeol, was stripped of his powers by parliament two weeks ago following a short-lived martial law order that plunged the country into political disarray. He is currently suspended while a top court decides his fate.
Han Duck-soo, the man who stepped in to replace Yoon as acting president, was impeached by parliament on Friday, meaning Choi – the finance minister and deputy prime minister – stepped in for him.
Boeing extended its condolences to those who lost loved ones in the crash.
“We are in contact with Jeju Air regarding Flight 2216 and stand ready to support them,” Boeing said in a short statement posted to its X account.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost loved ones and our thoughts remain with the passengers and crew,” the company added.