Plane Crash Kills 14 in Colombia Including a Municipal Mayor

A small plane DC-3 crashed Saturday in the central department (state) of Meta in Colombia. The accident happened while the pilot was trying an emergency landing at the airport of Villavicencio.

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Authorities from the Civil Aviation confirmed that all 14 occupants of the Latinoamericana de Servicios Aereos (Latin American Aerial Services) aircraft died at the scene. Among the passengers was the mayor of the Taraira municipality, Doris Liceth Villegas, with her husband and daughter, the local press reported.

The plan was flying between San Jose del Guaviare and Villavicencio when, at 10:40 a.m. (local time), the pilot reported an emergency allegedly due to a failed engine.

"While flying over the municipality of San Martin, one of the plane's engines shut down and the pilot, relying on his expertise, tries to land it (...) but it goes out of control," Colonel Jorge Martinez, Director of Civil Defense of the department of Meta, told the media.

During the failed emergency landing attempt, the plane hit a jungle area belonging to the La Bendicion farm and immediately caught fire. Personnel from the Investigation of Accidents of the Colombian Civil Aeronautics were deployed to the area and are currently analyzing evidence that will allow clarifying the possible causes of the accident.

According to the parent company, the aircraft's navigability permissions were up-to-date, as were the medical certifications of its crew. The Transportation Ministry of Colombia request media sources to prudently employ "the images that are circulating through social media, taking into account the victims and relatives involved in this painful incident."