Fifty-three confirmed killed as plane crashes into park lake in north China

0 Comments | AFP, November, 2004

BEIJING (AFP) — Fifty-three people were confirmed dead after a passenger plane crashed shortly after take-off in northern China, officials and state mmedia said.

China Eastern's flight MU-5210 bound for Shanghai plunged into a lake in Nanhai Park just minutes after leaving from Baotou city in Inner Mongolia region at 8:20 am (0020 GMT), the Xinhua news agency reported.

"There were 47 passengers on board and six crew members, and all died," the civil aviation authority said in a statement posted on its website.

Xinhua news agency quoted Baotou government officials as confirming the death toll of 53.

A Xinhua reporter said that when he arrived at the scene 30 minutes after the crash, a huge fire was visible on the surface of the lake.

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