A Ukrainian company cargo plane carrying military supplies sent by a private Serbian company to Bangladesh crashed on Saturday evening near the Greek city of Kavala, killing eight crew members.
Greek rescuers used a drone to monitor the wreckage for fear of a release of toxic substances, resulting in two firefighters being rushed to hospital early Sunday morning for breathing problems.
The photographer told the AFP news agency that the wreckage was scattered over a wide area of the crash site among the fields, and they can be clearly seen from the air.
Serbian Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said at a press conference in Belgrade on Sunday about the death of crew members of the Antonov cargo plane that crashed near the town of Paliochori in northern Greece. “Unfortunately, according to the information we received, eight crew members died as a result of the accident,” he said.
Denis Bogdanovich, CEO of the Ukrainian air transport company Meridian, which operates the aircraft, confirmed to the German TV channel Deutsche Welle that all crew members are Ukrainians.
The Serbian Minister of Defense explained that the plane took off from Niš airport (southern Serbia) on Saturday at around 20:40 (18:40 GMT), and Greek media reported that the plane requested an emergency landing at the nearby Greek Kavala airport, but was unable to reach before him.
The Serbian Defense Minister added that the plane was loaded with about 11 tons of weapons, including mines, owned by the private Serbian company Valer and sent to Bangladesh by agreement with the Ministry of Defense in Dhaka “in accordance with international rules”, denying that these weapons were sent to Ukraine.
“Unfortunately, the media claimed that the flight was carrying weapons to Ukraine, which is absolutely not true,” he said at his press conference.
The Bangladesh Army confirmed that the plane was carrying war materials sent to it. The Army’s public relations department said the plane was carrying “training mortars purchased from Serbia for the Bangladeshi Army” and border guards prior to the crash in Greece.
“There were no weapons in the party covered by the insurance,” he added.
On Sunday, the region was visited by the Consul of Ukraine in Thessaloniki, Vadym Sablyuk. The Athens news agency said he provided authorities with the identities of eight crew members, confirming that the plane was bound for Bangladesh.
Toxic Emissions
Videos posted by eyewitnesses on social media show a giant fireball circling over the plane as it crashed into the ground. The local channel also aired a video showing the aftermath of the collision in the field and the crashed plane over a wide area.
Witnesses reported on Saturday that the plane was on fire and that they heard explosions.
Yorgos Archontopoulos, a resident of the area, told state television ERT that he sensed something was wrong as soon as he heard the sound of the plane’s engine. “At 10:45 pm, I was surprised by the sound of the plane’s engine,” he said. “I went out and saw the plane on fire.”
Authorities have asked residents within a two-kilometer radius of the crash site to stay at home and wear masks on Saturday night.
The villagers were also not allowed to go to the fields near the scene until the authorities cleared the rubble and unexploded ordnance.
Local authorities said a special team of 13 firefighters, along with 26 other firefighters and seven fire engines, was sent to the area, but they have not yet been able to approach the crash site.
“Firefighters with special equipment and measuring instruments approached the crash site and carefully examined the fuselage of the aircraft and other parts scattered across the fields,” fire brigade spokesman Marius Apostolidis told reporters.
He added that the search parties will close when the situation becomes safe.
The Athens news agency said an investigation would be carried out to find out the causes of the accident.