Brazil in mourning after horrific plane crash kills everyone on board

Vinhedo, Brazil - An airplane carrying 57 passengers and four crew crashed Friday in a city in Brazil's São Paulo state, killing everyone on board, the airline said.

A plane carrying 61 people on board crashed in the Brazilian city of Vinhedo, killing all passengers and crew.
A plane carrying 61 people on board crashed in the Brazilian city of Vinhedo, killing all passengers and crew.  © REUTERS

The aircraft, an ATR 72-500 operated by Voepass airline, was traveling from Cascavel in southern Parana state to São Paulo's Guarulhos international airport when it crashed in the city of Vinhedo.

Voepass initially said the plane was carrying 58 passengers, but a statement on the airline's website later revised the figure to 57.

Images broadcast on local media showed a large plane spinning as it plummeted almost vertically, while other footage showed a large column of smoke rising from the crash site in what appeared to be a residential area.

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"There were no survivors," the city government in Valinhos – which was involved in the rescue and recovery operation in nearby Vinhedo – said in a statement to AFP.

With about 76,000 residents, the city is located some 50 miles northwest of São Paulo.

Recovery of the victims' remains for "identification" has begun and "will continue throughout the night," São Paulo State Governor Tarcisio de Freitas told reporters at the scene.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva declared three days of mourning.

Witnesses described "terrifying" plane crash

Firefighters, military police and state civil defense were deployed at the scene of the crash, which is a residential area.
Firefighters, military police and state civil defense were deployed at the scene of the crash, which is a residential area.  © REUTERS

Voepass said it was cooperating with authorities to "determine the causes of the accident," while giving full assistance to families of the victims on flight 2283.

The plane, a twin-engine turboprop, took off "without any flight restrictions, with all its systems operational," the company said.

Brazil's CENIPA aviation accident agency has launched an investigation.

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ATR, a Franco-Italian aircraft maker and Airbus subsidiary, said its experts were working to help investigators.

Truck driver Martins Barbosa (49) was working when he learned of the plane crash, which happened 500 feet from his home.

"I thought it might have fallen on my house, with my son inside," he told AFP, adding he felt despondent before learning his family was okay.

Nathalie Cicari, who lives near the crash site, told CNN Brasil the impact was "terrifying."

"I was having lunch, I heard a very loud noise very close by," she said, describing the sound as drone-like but "much louder."

"I went out on the balcony and saw the plane spinning. Within seconds, I realized that it was not a normal movement for a plane."

Cicari was not hurt, but had to evacuate her house, which was filled with black smoke from the crash.

Firefighters, military police and state civil defense were deployed at the scene. Military police told local media the accident had not caused any casualties on the ground, and that the fire sparked by the crash had been brought under control.

The plane's black box "has already been found, apparently preserved," São Paulo state security official Guilherme Derrite told reporters at the scene.

Cover photo: REUTERS

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