The death toll from a plane crash near Goma Airport in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo rose to 30 late Sunday, said authorities.
North Kivu provincial Health Minister Moise Kanyere told reporters that the number of dead had risen from 23 reported earlier in the day.
A Dornier-228 twin turboprop aircraft owned by private carrier Busy Bee was heading to Beni, about 350 kilometers (220 miles) north of Goma, when it crashed three minutes after takeoff in Mapendo district near the airport in North Kivu province, according to Kanyere.
COMPANY OFFICIALS ATTRIBUTED THE CRASH TO TECHNICAL ISSUES
Local authorities said the casualties on the ground were members of the same family, who were preparing to go to Sunday church service.
Death toll in Congo plane crash reaches 30 WATCH
Sources said a loud bang in one of the plane’s engines was heard moments after take-off.
An eyewitness in Goma said residents tried to put out the fire from the smoldering wreckage with water using buckets and cooking pots before rescue teams arrived.
