Residents and politicians are wondering what the machine was loaded with.
(Photo: Reuters)
Athens “We saw a ball of fire rushing out of the sky towards the earth. Then came the crash. The power went out at the same moment.” This is how a resident of the village of Antifilippi describes the crash of the Ukrainian cargo plane near the northern Greek port of Kavala late on Saturday evening.
Cell phone videos from eyewitnesses show how the plane, which was already burning in the air, is speeding towards the earth. There was a massive explosion on impact. The glow of the fire could be seen for miles. Firefighters and rescue teams were initially unable to get to the crash site because of the heavy smoke, numerous detonations and toxic gases.
Specialists from the Greek army began examining the wreckage of the crashed transport plane on Sunday afternoon. The authorities warned the population of potentially toxic fumes. The plane had loaded 11.5 tons of ammunition. However, the first investigations revealed on Sunday evening that the wreck does not pose any immediate danger.
The rescue workers would have to withdraw quickly, firefighters complained of respiratory problems.
(Photo: AP)
Video footage from drones showed the extent of the disaster. The crashing machine had plowed a path of destruction into the fields. Little debris remains of the plane. Some are widely scattered in the area. Larger pieces could only be seen from the front part of the fuselage. All eight crew members perished in the crash. The Ukrainian consul in Thessaloniki said they were Ukrainians.
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The Antonov An-12 aircraft, a four-engine turboprop freighter, took off from the Serbian city of Nis at 8:36 p.m. (CEST) on Saturday evening. The aircraft, delivered to the Russian Aeroflot in 1971, has only belonged to the Ukrainian airline Meridian Aviation since the beginning of this year. The destination of the flight was Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
Serbian Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic announced at a press conference in Belgrade in the morning that the plane had mortar shells and stun grenades on board. The cargo was destined for the Ministry of Defense in Bangladesh. The crew planned a stopover in the Jordanian capital Amman to refuel. But it did not get to that.
Over the northern Aegean, Greek air traffic control pilots reported problems with one of the engines and requested permission for an emergency landing. The plane then made a 180-degree turn to head for Kavala Airport.
Crash landing in a corn field
But she couldn’t reach it anymore. The pilot announced an emergency landing off-road with the landing gear retracted before radio contact was lost at 10:45 p.m. local time. Two minutes later, the machine’s radar signal also disappeared. Shortly thereafter, the machine crashed into a corn field about 20 kilometers from Kavala Airport. Because the plane struck a high-voltage line when it crashed, the power went out in the area.
Christos Tsokalidis was sitting outside with friends at dinner in the village of Paleochori. “We saw flames coming down from the sky, then we heard the impact. Even two hours after the crash, explosions could be heard from the crash site,” Tsokalidis said.
A local resident reported that the crashing plane just missed her house. “It was an incredible roar, the plane came over the mountain, turned and crashed into the field,” the woman said. Stamatis Kouretsis from the village of Antifilippi was among the first to reach the scene of the accident. “The caustic fumes burned our throats,” he reports.
Hours after the crash, it burns at the widely cordoned off crash site.
(Photo: AP)
The authorities first asked the residents of the surrounding villages to close windows and doors and not to leave their houses. On Sunday afternoon, a 14-strong special unit of the Greek armed forces to combat NBC warfare agents arrived at the scene of the accident. Experts from the Ministry of the Environment in Athens also flew to Kavala.
The experts should clarify whether danger emanates from the aircraft debris. Until then, there was a ban on going out and driving in the area. “People are very nervous,” said Thrace Prefecture Governor Christos Metios. “We are awaiting the results of the investigation.” As a precaution, the authorities were preparing for a possible evacuation of the village of Antifilippi.
Eight dead in cargo plane crash in northern Greece
The all-clear came on Sunday evening: the on-site experts did not find any toxic substances. The investigation into the cause of the accident can now begin. The investigators were able to recover one of the machine’s flight recorders. His evaluation could provide clues as to the cause of the crash. Seven bodies of the eight crew members were also found in the rubble.
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