The worst airline disaster in South Korea has claimed the live of 179 passengers. The text of one in that final chaotic moment has broken the hearts of many.
Jeju Air passenger’s haunting final text revealed before plane crashed in South Korea, killing 179 people
Two crew members survived, but all others aboard are believed to be dead, officials said. The victims — including 85 women, 84 men, and 10 others who were not immediately identifiable — died in the blaze, the South Korean fire agency said.
The lone pair of survivors were pulled to safety. Officials said they were not in life-threatening condition.
One of the passengers aboard the jet, which flew from Thailand to Muan International Airport Sunday morning, texted a relative that a bird was stuck in the plane’s wing, according to News1 agency.
“Should I say my last words?” the passenger texted their relative, according to the outlet.
One relative stood at a microphone to ask for more information from authorities. “My older brother died and I don’t know what’s going on,” he said. “I don’t know.”
Another asked journalists not to film. “We are not monkeys in a zoo,” he said. “We are the bereaved families.”
Mortuary vehicles lined up outside to take bodies away, and authorities said a temporary morgue had been established.
The crash site smelled of aviation fuel and blood, according to Reuters witnesses. Workers in protective suits and masks combed the area while soldiers searched through bushes.
The control tower issued a bird strike warning and shortly afterward the pilots declared mayday and then attempted to land from the opposite direction, a transport ministry official said.
