Video footage shows a passenger plane crashing in Brazil on Friday.
The Associated Press reported that a plane carrying 62 people crashed in a residential area of the Sao Paulo state on Friday.
Footage of the crash circulated across social media on Friday. The video shows the plane falling from the sky as a cloud of smoke rose from the site of the crash.
"Footage of the crash is circulating widely," journalist Yashar Ali posted on X, formerly Twitter.
The Context
Tens of millions of commercial flights across the globe occur each year, with crashes occurring from time to time. The International Air Transport Association reported in February that, 2023 was the safest year for air travel by many metrics, with one accident for every 1.26 million flights.
What We Know
Many details about the crash including its cause remained immediately unclear Friday afternoon.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva asked a crowd to observe a moment of silence for those aboard while speaking at an event in southern Brazil.
He said that "it seems all have died," reported The New York Times. However, he did not say how he received that information. Neither the airline nor officials at the scene of the crash have confirmed a death toll.
The AP reported that the airline VoePass said the plane was headed toward Sao Paulo's international airport when it crashed in the city of Vinhedo, about 40 miles northwest of Sao Paulo. At the time of the accident, 58 passengers and four crew members were aboard the plane.
Firefighters, military police and the civil defense authority responded to the crash, the AP reported.
The plane was flying from Cascavel, Brazil, reported the Times.
FlightRadar24 reported that the plane involved in the crash was an ATR72-500 that was built in 2010. They last received a signal for the flight at 12:22 p.m. ET.
"The last 60 seconds of the flight, the transponder of flight #2Z2283 was transmitting a vertical speed between -8.000 and -24.000 feet per minute," FlightRadar24 wrote in a post on X.
Views
Many users on X responded to the crash, expressing both fear and concern for the crash victims.
"Holy smokes," wrote @WuTangKids.
"Horrifying," posted Lisa Borden, senior policy counsel for international advocacy at the Southern Poverty Law Center.
"I've never seen a plane do this. I didn't even know it was possible. My literal nightmare" wrote writer Travon Free.
"A tragic day for Brazil. I can't imagine the pain and chaos these passengers and crew felt during their last moments. My heart goes out to the family of those killed in this heartbreaking crash. May God bring peace to their hearts," wrote journalist Sabrina Silva.
What's Next
Details about the investigation into the crash remained unknown to the public Friday afternoon.
Update 8/9/24, 2:23 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 8/9/24, 3:01 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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