At least 19 people have died after a Bangladesh air force plane crashed into a school campus in Dhaka.
Officials said more than 50 others, including children, were taken to hospital, mostly with burns injuries.
The plane crashed into the Milestone school and college in Dhaka’s northern area of Uttara on Monday.
“Bangladesh air force’s F-7 BGI training aircraft crashed in Uttara. The aircraft took off at 13:06 (0706 GMT),” the military’s public relations department said in a statement.
Videos of the aftermath of the crash showed a large fire and heavy smoke.
Crowds watched from a distance as firefighters sprayed water on the mangled remains of the plane, which appeared to be lodged in the side of a building where it had made a gaping hole. People were screaming and crying as others tried to comfort them.
“A third-grade student was brought in dead, and three others, aged 12, 14 and 40, were admitted to the hospital,” said Bidhan Sarker, head of the burns unit at the Dhaka medical college and hospital.
Masud Tarik, a teacher at the school, said: “When I was picking (up) my kids and went to the gate, I realised something came from behind. I heard an explosion. When I looked back, I only saw fire and smoke.”
Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh’s interim government, said “necessary measures” would be taken to investigate the cause of the accident and “ensure all kinds of assistance”. He added: “The loss suffered by the air force, students, parents, teachers and staff and others in this accident is irreparable.”
The incident comes a little over a month after an Air India plane crashed into a medical college hostel in Ahmedabad, India, killing 241 of the 242 people onboard and 19 on the ground. It was the world’s worst aviation disaster in a decade.
