Barcelos: As many as 14 people lost their lives when a plane crashed in Amazon Saturday, leaving no survivors, Brazilian media reported as the governor of the state confirmed the incident.
Governor Wilson Lima wrote on his social media post saying twelve passengers and two crew were killed in the accident, that occurred in the northern town of Barcelos — a tourist destination.
The plane was an 18-passenger EMB-110, a twin-engine turboprop manufactured by Brazilian aircraft maker Embraer, reported a news site G1.
It was said to be on its way from the state capital, Manaus, to Barcelos, about a 90-minute flight.
Located on the Rio Negro, an Amazon tributary, it is bordered by several national parks and other protected areas.
News site UOL said the passengers were Brazilians travelling to the region for sport fishing, citing state security secretary Vinicius Almeida.
The crash comes over four months after an aviation incident took place in the dense forests of the Amazon which killed at least three people including a mother of surviving children, who struggled to be alive in the forest for more than a month.
The plane — a Cessna 206 — was carrying seven people on a route between Araracuara, in Amazonas province, and San Jose del Guaviare, a city in Guaviare province, when it issued a Mayday alert due to engine failure in the early hours of May 1.
Tragically, three adults, including the pilot and the children’s mother Magdalena Mucutuy, died as a result of the crash and their bodies were found inside the plane.
The four siblings, aged 13, 9, and 4, as well as a now 12-month-old baby, survived the impact.
An extensive search and rescue operation involving soldiers and local residents was launched in response to their disappearance. The survivors were finally rescued in July.
