An Azerbaijani airliner with 67 passengers crashed in southwestern Kazakhstan on Wednesday, resulting in at least 38 fatalities, according to Kazakh officials.
During a comprehensive rescue effort, 29 individuals, including two children, were rescued from the debris near Aktau, with Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev reporting that 11 of the survivors are critically injured.
Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 was en route from Baku to Grozny in Chechnya when it was forced to make an emergency landing about 3 kilometers from Aktau, according to the airline.
Video footage from the site showed survivors, appearing stunned, exiting the burnt remains of the aircraft. Kazakh authorities have confirmed that all survivors were transported to medical facilities.
“The bodies are in poor condition, mostly burnt, all collected,” Bozumbayev said. “Now they will be in the morgue, and identification will take place.”
Bozumbayev mentioned that one survivor’s identity is still unknown. “She is unconscious, has no documents, and is in the hospital,” he added.
The plane’s black box has been recovered by a search team, as reported by the Azerbaijan state news agency AZERTAC, and the Kazakhstan government has established a commission to investigate the crash causes and support the families of the passengers.
This investigation will be conducted jointly with Azerbaijan.
Upon arriving at the crash location, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations encountered the aircraft engulfed in flames, which the rescue units managed to extinguish.
A video captured the Embraer 190 aircraft making erratic maneuvers around the airfield before crashing and bursting into flames, with injured passengers seen exiting the wreckage soon after.
Elmira, a volunteer at the scene, recounted to Radio Free Europe’s Kazakh Service a harrowing experience that moved her to tears.
“The front of the plane was on fire. We rescued the survivors. Their bodies were covered in blood. They were crying. Everyone was asking for help,” Elmira, who withheld her last name, reported.
According to Elmira, survivors included people of varying ages, from adults to teens and a young child.
“A little girl came out. She looked at me and said, ‘Save my mom, my mom is still there. She was crying and begging, ‘Please save her, save her,’” she said.
Elmira traveled by bus to the crash site and, along with other volunteers, helped the survivors onto the bus to keep them from the cold.
“It was cold outside. None of them had jackets, just light sweaters. We kept them on the bus until the ambulance arrived,” she explained.
According to a preliminary report by Kazakhstan’s transport ministry, the plane was carrying 62 passengers and 5 crew members. Preliminary data indicated 37 passengers were from Azerbaijan, 16 from Russia, six from Kazakhstan, and three from Kyrgyzstan.
None of the survivors were citizens of Kazakhstan, as stated by Deputy Prime Minister Bozumbayev.
Following the crash, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev interrupted his visit to Russia, as reported by Kazakhstan’s state news agency.
In response to the tragedy, a national day of mourning was declared in Azerbaijan on December 26, as announced by Azerbaijani state media.
