Plane crash in Bolivia: a plane crashed on a road while attempting to land

It happened in the city of El Alto, the second most populated in the country. It is a Hercules aircraft of the Bolivian Air Force. For the moment, the authorities have not reported any deaths or injuries. A Bolivian Air Force (FAB) military cargo plane suffered an accident this Friday near the El Alto international airport, the second most populated city in Bolivia, at approximately 6:00 PM. An official source told EFE that the plane touched down and failed to brake, presumably because the runway was icy due to a hailstorm that fell earlier in El Alto, although official information about the accident will be provided in the coming hours by the Minister of Defense, Marcelo Salinas.

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At the moment there is no official information on deaths or injuries. The Boliviana de Aviación (BoA) state airline reported in a statement that El Alto airport, which serves La Paz, "is temporarily closed by order of the airport authority due to an incident recorded with an aircraft on the runway" that does not belong to that company. BoA pointed out that, while the situation is "completely unrelated" to its operations, the temporary closure of the airport "could generate delays, rescheduling or cancellations" on some of its flights to and from La Paz "until normal conditions are restored" at the airport terminal. In videos recorded by local residents and shared on social media, it is observed how the aircraft impacted several cars, including trucks and public service vehicles, some of which were destroyed. Witnesses claim that more than a dozen vehicles were hit by the plane during the accident. The images show part of the Hercules fuselage and people who, in the midst of the confusion, were requesting help for the injured. Despite the severity of the accident, there was no explosion of the aircraft, although a tanker truck from the airport immediately went to prevent fires. One of the elements that drew the most attention, according to visual reports and testimonies, was the presence of money scattered at the impact site. Both bills and boxes were found scattered on the road, which led several people to approach to collect the cash before the authorities managed to secure the area. This fact fueled the presumption that the aircraft was carrying valuables, although this point has not been officially confirmed by the FAB. You can also read: Military and police personnel arrived quickly to cordon off the area and facilitate the work of emergency teams. Firefighters and rescuers worked to assist the injured, who were taken to nearby health centers, although there is no official report yet on the exact number of injured or possible fatalities.