Juba | At least 10 people died Tuesday in the crash of a commercial plane in Pieri, in the South Sudanese state of Jonglei, announced the governor of this region in a statement dated Tuesday and transmitted Wednesday to AFP.
“It was with amazement and horror that I learned the news of the crash of the plane (HK-4274) of the company South Supreme (Airlines), which occurred today, March 2, 2021, around 17 h 05 “, declared Denay Jock Chagor in this press release published Tuesday evening.
“Ten people whose two pilots lost their lives. Our prayers go out to their families and loved ones, ”adds the text.
The press release specifies that the crash occurred on the take-off runway in the town of Pieri, a small town in this state in the east of the country.
The exact number of passengers on the plane could not be confirmed by AFP for the moment. Contacted, the company itself says that some information shows “10 people, others 11 and others 24” but declares that “all are dead”.
“All we were told is that the plane took off normally to reach Pieri, landed and when it took off to leave for Juba it crashed,” Ayii told AFP on Wednesday. Duang Ayii, director of South Supreme Airlines.
“No one knows for the moment what caused the accident, we have not yet sent an investigation team to the field,” he added.
In 2017, a South Supreme Airlines plane caught fire on landing in Wau State, in the northwest of the country. Thirty-seven passengers were injured but all survived.
South Sudan is one of the least developed countries in the world.
Two years after its independence in 2011, conquered after a bloody conflict with Khartoum, the country plunged into a deadly civil war (380,000 victims) which officially ended in February 2020 with the creation of a government of national unity , which brought relative peace.