Plane carrying nine, including five foreign tourists, crashes 11 minutes after takeoff from Suvarnabhumi. Rescuers, battling rising floodwaters in Chachoengsao, recover body parts and personal items from the wreckage in a marshy swamp area.
A plane, which took off from Suvarnabhumi Airport on Thursday afternoon, fell from the sky just over eleven minutes later, southeast of Bangkok in Chachoengsao. All nine aboard the aircraft are thought to have been killed, including five foreign tourists travelling to southern Trat province. On Thursday night, rescuers working against time and rising floodwaters began to discover body parts as they unearthed the aircraft, which had gone down head-first into a marshy swamp area.
It is feared that nine people perished on Thursday afternoon at around 3:00 p.m. when an aircraft plunged to the ground in Chachoengsao province.
Later in the evening, rescue workers, officials, and forensic police were working frantically to unearth the small aircraft, which appears to have hit the ground head-on within a marshy area of a mangrove forest.
Officials were working against the clock to pump out water as the area was due to flood by 10:00 p.m. Nonetheless, the rescue team has already made some grisly finds, including body parts such as hands and legs.
Police respond to plane crash in Chachoengsao as mixed accounts of what happened emerge from the scene
Police from Bang Pakong Police Station responded to local reports of the plane crash. The Superintendent of Bang Pakong Police, Police Colonel Phongsan Meesri, and other officers travelled to the site of the crash off Highway 7.
There are mixed accounts of exactly what happened. Some locals reported hearing an explosion in the sky, while others saw the small aircraft descending sharply into a rice field and ending up in the mangrove forest swamp.
One eyewitness to the disaster was 56-year-old Preecha Boontham. Mr. Preecha said he saw the plane come down and crash into the swamp pit. Afterwards, he heard a massive explosion. Certainly, police at the scene report signs of an explosion with burned leaves and debris.
Rescuers uncover debris and personal items of foreign tourists as they work to retrieve the plane wreckage
At the same time, the plane appears to have buried itself in the pit. Police and rescue services at the scene found broken-off parts of the plane. Additionally, they found photographs of foreign tourists, particularly women and children. Certainly, a flight pass was also found for a male tourist.
Eventually, a backhoe was brought to the scene to expedite the retrieval of the wreckage. Soon after, there were reports of body parts.
It is understood that the plane was carrying two pilots, two flight attendants, and five foreign tourists. At this time, it is thought that all have perished in the crash.
Significantly, Mr. Preecha’s testimony was that the plane at first accelerated loudly. Then, he recalled that it descended precipitously into the rice fields and carried on into the mangrove forest. After that, he heard it explode.
Flight details emerge and recovery continues as fears grow over potential fatalities, all appear to have perished
The Cessna Caravan C208 reportedly took off from Suvarnabhumi Airport at 14:46 hours on Thursday. Flight TFT209 was bound for Trat Province and Trat Airport. However, at around 14:57 hours, the control tower at Suvarnabhumi lost contact with the plane southeast of Bangkok.
The white aircraft, call sign HSSKR, was operated by the Thai Flying Service Company Limited.
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On Thursday evening, pumps were brought in to keep the water at bay, as well as lighting, as the rescue effort continued. In short, it was only at 7:40 p.m. that rescuers found the first body parts. Certainly, it is anticipated that more will be found as officials begin to fear the worst.
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Further reading:
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