Harrowing footage capturing the aftermath of the jet crash near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday is doing rounds on social media. Kazakh rescuers have released bodycam footage showing the wreckage and firefighters rushing towards the flight to extinguish fire at the accident spot.
The country's authorities said that the jet was carrying 62 passengers and five crew members. As per reports, over 30 people survived and were hospitalised with various injuries. According to a senior Kazakh official, a total of 38 people died in the incident.
"The situation is not very good, 38 dead," Russia's Interfax news agency quoted deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev as saying.
RIA Novosti, a Russian state news agency published an unverified video of the accident that showed rescue workers pulling the injured people from the wreckage.
Also read: Bird strike may have caused emergency, forcing flight to take alternate airfield Russia's state aviation authority while addressing the incident said that an Embraer-190 plane, travelling to North Caucasus's Grozny from the Azerbaijani capital Baku, was trying to make an emergency landing in Aktau after hitting a flock of birds.
Releasing a statement, the airline said that the plane had come down about 1.8 miles away in Aktau.
According to Kazakhstan's transportation ministry, there were 37 Azerbaijani nationals, 16 Russians, six Kazakh citizens and three Kyrgyz nationals on the flight.