Pictures have been released of the moment a child was dramatically saved for the plane which crashed in Taiwan this morning, killing at least 23 people.
The plane, carrying 58 people, mostly Chinese tourists, has crashed into a river in Taiwan, with at least 23 people have killed and 20 believed to still be missing.
It was feared everyone on board would be killed when the plane clipped a bridge and crashed into the river on the island’s capital of Taipei, however, fifteen people have now been rescued with varying injuries.
The pictures below show the heroic rescue efforts which saved the life of the young child and a number of others.
The death toll was expected to rise as rescue crews cleared the mostly submerged fuselage in the Keelung River.
Video clips apparently taken from cars were posted online showing the ATR 72 propjet as it pivoted onto its side while heading towards a traffic bridge over the river.
Local media speculation suggests the pilot may have turned sharply to follow the line of the river to avoid crashing into a high-rise residential area nearby, but Taiwan’s aviation authority said it had no evidence of that.
Taiwanese broadcasters repeatedly played a recording of the plane’s final contact with the control tower in which the pilot called out “Mayday” three times. The recording offered no direct clues as to why the plane was in distress.
It was the airline’s second French-Italian-built ATR 72 to crash in the past year.
