Plane smashes into residential building in Brazil (GRAPHIC VIDEOS)
A small single-engine Embraer 721C plane crashed into a residential building in the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte on Monday, according to local officials and firefighters.
The aircraft, which had five people on board, reportedly took off from Pampulha Airport at 12:16 PM and crashed minutes later in the Silveira neighborhood. Emergency services were called to the scene at around 12:25 PM.
Footage circulating online shows the plane flying low over the area, seemingly attempting to avoid taller buildings, before smashing into the side of a four-story residential building.
The aircraft hit the stairwell between the third and fourth floors, avoiding the apartments themselves.
No residents of the building were reported injured. According to another graphic video, they tried to help one of the survivors, who suffered a gruesome leg fracture.
The fatalities included the pilot, identified by Globo News as Wellington Oliveira, 34, and passenger Fernando Moreira Souto, 36, the son of the mayor of Jequitinhonha. Three survivors were rushed to the hospital in serious condition, but one of them later succumbed to their injuries.
The plane was identified as an EMB-721C aircraft manufactured in 1979, according to records cited by Brazilian media. The pilot had reportedly told the Pampulha Airport control tower that he was having difficulty taking off before the crash.
Brazil’s air accident investigation authorities, including the Center for Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents and regional investigators from SERIPA III, were sent to the site. Minas Gerais Civil Police also opened an investigation into the cause of the crash.
