South Korea: Death toll from plane crash rises to 62; officials suspect ‘bird strike’

The death toll from Sunday’s passenger jet crash in South Korea’s Muan County has jumped to 62, after the aircraft carrying 181 people veered off the runway and erupted into flames, Yonhap News Agency reported, citing authorities.

The incident occurred at 9:07 am (local time) when a Jeju Air flight veered off the runway during landing and struck a fence at Musan International Airport in Muan County, about 288 kilometres southwest of Seoul.

The plane, carrying 175 passengers and six crew members, was returning from Bangkok. The majority of passengers were South Korean nationals, with two Thai nationals also on board.

Videos aired by local TV stations show the plane attempting to land without its landing gear deployed. The plane skidded along the ground, crashing into a concrete wall before exploding and being engulfed in flames, Yonhap reported.

Firefighters have since extinguished the blaze, and search and rescue operations are ongoing at the crash site. Around 80 firefighters have been deployed to assist.

Preliminary investigations suggest that a possible landing gear failure, potentially caused by a bird strike, may have led to the crash. Authorities have launched an on-site investigation to determine the exact cause.

Acting President Choi Sang-mok directed officials to prioritise rescue efforts and travelled to the site of the accident, according to his office.

The presidential office announced an emergency meeting of senior officials, led by Presidential Chief of Staff Chung Jin-suk, at 11:30 am (local time) to discuss the government’s response.

Acting National Police Agency Commissioner-General Lee Ho-young also ordered officials to mobilize all available resources and work with firefighting and other related agencies to help with the rescue efforts, Yonhap reported.