Print Print 2020-05-24

Survivor recalls horror of PIA plane crash

One of the two people to survive a plane crash in Karachi that killed 97 people on board has described jumping from the burning wreckage of the aircraft after it hurtled into a residential neighbourhood.
Published 24 May, 2020 12:01am

One of the two people to survive a plane crash in Karachi that killed 97 people on board has described jumping from the burning wreckage of the aircraft after it hurtled into a residential neighbourhood.
The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane came down among houses on Friday after both engines failed as it approached Karachi airport, the airline said.
Its wings sliced through rooftops, sending flames and plumes of smoke into the air as it crashed onto a street, sparking a rescue operation that lasted until the early hours of Saturday.
The 97 victims had been on the plane, the Sindh health ministry said, while four people on the ground were injured after earlier reports on Friday suggested some residents had been killed by the crash.
and I regained consciousness, I saw fire everywhere and no one was visible," passenger Mohammad Zubair, 24, said from his hospital bed in a video clip circulated on social media.
"The cries were everywhere and everybody was trying to survive. I undid my seat belt and I saw some light and tried to walk towards it. Then I jumped out."
Zubair had suffered burns but was in a stable condition, a health ministry official said.
The airline named the other survivor as the president of the Bank of Punjab, Zafar Masud.
At least 19 bodies had been identified, while 47 relatives had come forward to provide DNA samples for tests.
The first funerals were also underway, with many more to come.
"He was supposed to come last Friday but had to postpone," said Jehanzeb Baloch at the burial of his nephew, Major Shaheryar Baloch, who died along with his wife and two children. The family had been returning to Karachi for the Eid holiday marking the end of Ramadan.
Several members of the armed forces were on the plane, the military said.
"Eid has become meaningless not only for Karachi but the whole of Pakistan," said Zia ul Huq Qamar, who lives near the crash site.
Shahbaz Hussain said his mother, who was also among the victims, had been flying back to Karachi after becoming stranded by the lockdown in Lahore while visiting her daughters.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2020

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