MOSCOW — Rescuers have found the bodies of 19 victims a day after a plane crash in a remote area in Russia’s Far East, the authorities said.
An Antonov An-26 carrying 28 people crashed Tuesday near its destination town of Palana in the region of Kamchatka, apparently as it came in for a landing in bad weather. The plane was en route from the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to Palana on Tuesday morning when it missed a scheduled communication and disappeared from radar.
Wreckage was found Tuesday evening on a coastal cliffside and in the sea, according to AP.
President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday morning extended his condolences to the families of the victims.
The governor of Kamchatka, Vladimir Solodov, told the state Tass news agency that the “first bodies are being pulled out (of the water).” Russia’s Emergency Ministry said that remains of 19 victims have been found so far, and one of them has been identified already.
In the aftermath of the crash, the authorities in Kamchatka have declared three days of mourning. Officials said that families of the victims will receive payments of more than 3.5 million rubles (about $47,200) that will include compensation from the airline, an insurance payment and a subsidy from the regional government.
Police are investigating the incident, looking at three possible causes of the crash — bad weather, equipment malfunction or pilot error.
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