All 103 people on board Aeromexico flight miraculously survive after plane crashes and bursts into flames
All 103 people onboard an Aeroméxico flight survived miraculously even after the plane crashed and caught fire on Tuesday in the northwest Mexican state of Durango.
According to reports, at least 85 people were injured in the crash, two of whom are said to be in critical condition. There were a total of ninety-nine passengers and four crew members on the aircraft when the accident occurred. It is not yet clear how many Americans were aboard the plane at the time.
Aeroméxico Flight 2431 crash-landed shortly after taking off from the Guadalupe Victoria Durango International Airport.
Durango state Governor Jose Aispuro, while talking to The Associated Press, said: "Fortunately, we have now found all 103 — now we know where each one is — this gives us a lot of tranquillity."
The Secretary of Communications and Transportation, Gerardo Ruiz Esparza, and the airline announced that there were no reported fatalities.
The Red Cross in Mexico, on Tuesday, said that paramedics at the site of the accident had rushed at least 27 wounded people to nearby medical facilities for treatment.
Aeroméxico also released a statement, which said: "We deeply regret this accident. The families of all those affected are in our thoughts and in our hearts," Reuters reported.
The affected passengers their ordeal while talking to the local news outlets in Mexico and said that they were grateful that no one had died in the tragedy.
"The people were panicked. There was another family with three kids and another man whose head was all bloody," a passenger on the flight, Jackeline Flores, told Univision. She added that authorities rushed to the spot nearly 20 minutes after the crash and helped them evacuate the plane.
"We walked, we arrived at a little white [house] and we waited for the rain to stop and someone to help us. We started to pray while we watched how the plane was burning. I feel blessed and grateful to God," Flores added.
A spokesperson for Mexico’s Health Department, Fernando Rios, said that at least two people were in critical condition, including a pilot who was undergoing surgery for a spinal injury.
The Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto expressed his solidarity for the wounded and added that he had asked federal agencies to coordinate for a steady response. "All my solidarity and wishes of fast recovery for the wounded,” he wrote on Twitter late Tuesday.
An American survivor of the crash, Alberto Herrera, while talking to NBC said: "The cabin just started filling with black smoke."
“We wanted to try to find the nearest exit. As I was walking toward the back, I was checking to see if anyone was knocked out or anything or if anyone needed assistance. ... I feel that it’s kind of a miracle that we all made it, so it’s just a blessing that I’m here," Herrera added.