Monday, 21/05/2018 16:50 (GMT+7)
Some 20 of the 110 victims have been identified after an ill-fated Cubana de Aviacion Boeing 737-200 crashed shortly after taking off from Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport.
The rescue force is seeking the victims (Source: Xinhua/VNA)
Cubana de Aviacion flight DMJ 0972 was traveling from Havana to Holguin when the plane crashed shortly after taking off at 12h08 on May 18th.
In the first official death toll provided by authorities, Transportation Minister Adel Yzquierdo Rodriguez said 110 had died, including five children. He also announced that a flight recorder from the plane had been located.
One of the plane's two black boxes has been recovered in "good condition" and handed to investigators, Mr. Yzquierdo said, with the other expected to be found "in the next few hours".
Flags flew at half-mast in Cuba on Saturday (May 19th), marking the start of two days of national mourning, while authorities worked to recover evidence from the site and to identify the victims.
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said a special commission had been formed to identify the cause of the crash. The plane was carrying 104 passengers and six crew members.
In November 2010, a domestic passenger plane with 61 passengers and seven crew members crashed in central Cuba, according to state media./.
Compiled by BTA