JUBA, South Sudan – The South Sudan plane crash which was amazingly survived by a baby and the man holding her, was of a cargo plane carrying more than 30 unauthorized passengers, the only adult survivor of the crash said Saturday.
The Soviet-built Antonov AN-12 was had taken off from South Sudan's capital, Juba, on Thursday and was headed for the Paloich oil fields with a crew of six when it crashed, according to South Sudan's Civil Aviation Authority. Thirty-seven people died in the crash, said officials.
Wuor Arop told The Associated Press from his hospital bed where he was recovering with limbs broken in six places and a head injury that the plane carried more than 30 passengers.
The only other survivor is a 13-month old baby not related to Arop whom he cradled in his arms during the crash. She survived with a broken leg and a cut on her forehead.
Shortly after takeoff other passengers started shouting that the plane was crashing, said Arop.
"The baby I grabbed, (she) was near me," he said. "Plus my friend who was near me, he stepped on me so I grabbed him."
He said he remembers his friend calling out his name just before impact, his last memory before waking up in hospital.
Arop said he paid 500 South Sudanese pounds, less than 30 dollars at Juba street exchange rates, to an unofficial "dealmaker" for a seat on the cargo flight. He said no ticket was issued and the fee was split between the pilot and the broker.
He was one of nine people besides the crew who had seats on the plane, while the other passengers sat among the cargo, which included cheap sandals, crackers, cans of beer, and medicine, he said.
The plane's three black boxes were recovered, Minister of Transportation Kuong Danhier Gatluak said Saturday. The government has banned all AN-12s from flying in South Sudan for the time being, he said.
William Deng of Allied Services Ltd., the company which operated the Tajikistan-registered plane, declined to answer questions when reached on the telephone on Saturday.
Arop said he was flying to Paloich to return to his job with the Danish Refugee Council after visiting his family in Juba.
There are no commercial passenger flights to Paloich and roads are impassable due to South Sudan's civil war and rainy season. The U.N. Humanitarian Air Service, which transports aid workers around this mostly road-less nation, also flies to Paloich.
South Sudan's presidential spokesperson Ateny Wek Ateny previously said the flight was chartered by a local businessman, but gave no more details.
The flight was carrying its maximum cargo of 15.5 tons when it took off, according to Civil Aviation Authority head Stephen Warikozi, citing the cargo manifest. Warikozi said they have not found a passenger manifest.
Newer articles:
- These Are The Faces Of Resilience In South Sudan - 10/11/2015 13:30
- Black boxes in S.Sudan air crash recovered: state radio - 10/11/2015 01:24
- South Sudan: The Hell From Whence He Came - 09/11/2015 10:49
- An Island Refuge, Surrounded by Bloody Civil War, in South Sudan - 09/11/2015 07:52
- South Sudan is not a ‘walk in the park’- Ambassador Mariano Deng - 07/11/2015 23:18
Older news items
- Children massacred in South Sudan battles: UN - 07/11/2015 06:53
- South Sudan plane crash survivor says plane held riders as cargo - 07/11/2015 00:00
- Famine looms in S.Sudan war zones as aid agencies blocked - 06/11/2015 15:27
- South Sudan bans Russian-made plane AN-12 from airspace - 06/11/2015 14:31
- From Indiana to South Sudan: A proud immigrant’s wrenching journey home - 06/11/2015 11:15
Latest news items (all categories):
- South Sudan’s ‘Game Of Thrones’ Continues – Analysis - 01/12/2024 17:47
- South Sudan secured over 282 150 doses of oral cholera vaccine to contain the cholera outbreak - 01/12/2024 17:43
- The idea of one nation and one people is a distortion of our reality!!! - 29/11/2024 12:54
- In South Sudan with aid boss John Rynne: 'The maps drawn in colonial times are starting to erode' - 29/11/2024 12:47
- 'They have nothing': Aid workers struggle to save lives at edge of war-torn Sudan - 29/11/2024 12:36
Random articles (all categories):
- SOUTH SUDAN: UN AGENCIES DISTRIBUTING AID TO THOUSANDS DISPLACED BY CONFLICT IN JONGLEI - 03/09/2013 14:31
- South Sudan Facing 'Catastrophic' Hunger: Aid Agency - 15/05/2014 06:55
- UNHCR - Internal/External Vacancy Notice : Field Associate, G- 6 ,(PN 10018722), Bunj - 25/01/2016 23:49
- Independence of South Sudan is Not an Insult to Nuba and Funj - 25/11/2008 20:44
- South Sudan renews oil deals with China, Malaysia - 06/01/2017 06:50
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 58286 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 22212 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 21350 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 18861 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 17966 times