A military transport plane carrying 128 people crashed shortly after takeoff in Puerto Leguizamo in southern Colombia, killing at least 66 and injuring dozens, according to the head of Colombia’s armed forces. Four military personnel remain missing.
“Sadly, as a consequence of this tragic accident, 66 of our military elements died,” General Hugo Alejandro Lopez Barreto said.
Local government secretary Carlos Claros told RCN television that another 81 people were injured.
Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez said the Lockheed Martin Hercules C-130 was transporting troops from Puerto Leguizamo to Putumayo. Investigators were probing the cause of the crash.
The aircraft went down as it was taking off from Puerto Leguizamo, in Colombia’s southern Amazon region on the border with Peru, according to Sanchez, who called it a “tragic accident.”
Photos shared online showed a black cloud of smoke rising from the crash site and soldiers rushing to the area. Local outlet BluRadio reported the crash occurred about 3 kilometers (2 miles) from an urban center, citing authorities.
Sanchez said the exact number of victims and the causes of the crash had not yet been determined. “At the moment, we have no information, or indications, that it was an attack by an illegal armed group,” the military chief Barreto added.
President Gustavo Petro criticized “bureaucratic difficulties” for delaying plans to modernize the military, posting that he would not allow further delays and that officials unable to meet the challenge should be removed.
Colombia has operated Hercules C-130 planes since the late 1960s; the aircraft was first launched in the 1950s. Recently, Colombia replaced some older models with newer ones sent from the United States.
Earlier this year, a Bolivian Air Force Hercules C-130 crashed in the city of El Alto, killing more than 20 people and injuring about 30.
Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko and Louis Oelofse