Seoul [South Korea], December 29 : After a passenger jet with 181 people on board burst into flames after veering off the runway and colliding with a wall at an airport in South Korea's Muan County on Sunday, authorities believe all but two onboard are feared to have been killed, Yonhap News Agency reported.
The incident occurred at 9:07 am (local time) when a Jeju Air flight veered off the runway during landing and struck a fence at Musan International Airport in Muan County, about 288 kilometres southwest of Seoul.
The plane, carrying 175 passengers and six crew members, was returning from Bangkok. The majority of passengers were South Korean nationals, with two Thai nationals also on board.
Videos aired by local TV stations show the plane attempting to land without its landing gear deployed. The plane skidded along the ground, crashing into a concrete wall before exploding and being engulfed in flames, Yonhap reported.
Firefighting officials reported that, apart from two survivors, all those unaccounted for are presumed dead. Efforts have now shifted to a recovery operation to retrieve bodies.
So far, authorities have confirmed 85 fatalities. Two survivors, both female, a passenger and a crew member, were rescued shortly after the crash and are receiving treatment at a hospital in Mokpo.
In response to the tragedy, South Jeolla officials increased emergency alerts to the highest level and dispatched all available rescue and police teams to the crash site.
Acting President Choi Sang-mok arrived at the crash site around noon, instructing officials to make all-out efforts for search operations. Choi also expressed deep condolences to the bereaved family members and promised to offer them all possible government assistance, Yonhap reported.
Preliminary investigations suggested that a possible landing gear failure, potentially caused by a bird strike, may have led to the crash. Authorities have launched an on-site investigation to determine the exact cause.
The presidential office announced an emergency meeting of senior officials, led by Presidential Chief of Staff Chung Jin-suk, at 11:30 am (local time) to discuss the government's response.
Acting National Police Agency Commissioner-General Lee Ho-young also ordered officials to mobilize all available resources and work with firefighting and other related agencies to help with the rescue efforts, as per Yonhap.
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