Breaking News: A plane crash in Colombia kills 15 people, including a member of parliament

Colombia, Thekabarnews.com—A plane crash in northern Colombia killed all 15 people on board. This included a Colombian politician and a candidate for Congress, police said Wednesday, January 28.

The Beechcraft 1900 plane, operated by the state airline Satena and equipped with two engines, took off from Cúcuta near the Venezuela border. It lost touch with air traffic control just a few minutes into its flight to Ocaña.

Official reports say that the plane went off radar about 12 minutes after takeoff. Rescue teams later found the aircraft wreckage in a remote mountainous area of Playa de Belén, Norte de Santander Province.

A Colombian civil aviation authority official verified the worst suspicions of rescue teams when they said, “There were no survivors.”

The victims included 36-year-old Congressman Diógenes Quintero, who represented the Catatumbo district and won his seat under a peace-seat provision. Carlos Salcedo, who was running for Congress in the upcoming election, also died.

The Colombian Aerospace Force and local emergency responders quickly got to work on rescue and recovery. But the rough terrain, thick rainforest, and quickly changing weather in the Andes foothills have made the job hard.

Local officials, such as the governor of Norte de Santander, reported the discovery of several bodies so far. Additionally, identification and evacuation are still going on.

The police are still looking into what caused the crash. As they try to figure out what caused the plane to suddenly drop, officials have not ruled out things like bad weather or possible mechanical problems.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro and other national officials have sent their deepest sympathies to the families of the people who died. Today is a day of national sorrow.

This tragic catastrophe struck Colombia as concerns about flight safety in remote regions continue to grow. This concern is especially strong in areas that airlines frequently use because of the country’s challenging terrain.