A Tanzanian commercial flight by Precision Air crashed into Lake Victoria on Sunday in attempt to land in the Lakeside of Bukoba airport runway. The plane which was flying from Dar es salaam to Bukoba via Mwanza had 43 passengers on board has left at least 19 people dead while others rescued and taken to the hospital where they are receiving treatment.

According to the Tanzanian’s prime minister the two pilots initially survived and managed to speak to local officials from the cockpit but they later died..
Abdul Nuri who is one of the people who witnessed the crash said that most people there were waiting for the return of their relatives. He also added that the fishermen who were on the scene managed to get into the plane and rescued some of the passengers.

The tragedy which is said to have been caused by the bad weather left the plane completely submerged with only its tail and wings visible. Now the emergency workers have managed to pull the plane closer to the shore.

Speaking to one of the known media station, Richard Komba, a survivor of the crash, said that when the plane was about to land, the weather had deteriorated, forcing the pilot to reroute the aircraft, when they were then informed that they would be landing shortly but there was a heavy turbulence when they later found themselves in the lake.

“Water then entered the plane and those sitting near the front were covered by it. I was in the back seat and most of us in the back of the plane struggled to get out. One cabin crew member was struggling to open the aircraft’s door, but he was eventually able to be freed. When we got out, no boat was there – it took quite long to get rescued but the boat that came was not so good, it was a canoe. The survivors were “scared” because of the number of people trying to fit in the one vessel, but he said other rescue boats arrived minutes later.” Richard narrated.

From the report given by the Tanzania’s Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa said that the rescued passengers are now in hospital, not seriously injured but most are in a state of shock and worry.

The airport has been closed until further notice as an extensive investigation is being carried out to determine the full cause of the crash.

By Jane Kibathi.