An ATR-72 turboprop plane operated by regional carrier Voepass crashed on Friday in Vinhedo, a residential area near São Paulo, Brazil, killing all 62 people on board. The aircraft, which was en route from Cascavel in Paraná state to São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport, went down suddenly, with flight data showing a rapid descent of 17,000 feet in just one minute.
🚨🇧🇷#BREAKING: A large passenger plane just crashed in Brazil.
— Censored Men (@CensoredMen) August 9, 2024
Among the victims were at least eight cancer doctors who were traveling to an oncology conference, according to Brazilian officials. The crash has devastated the medical community, with Parana state governor Ratinho Junior confirming the loss of four professors from Unioeste university and two trainee doctors from the Uopeccan Cancer Hospital in Cascavel.
The flight had initially been reported to have 61 people on board, but Voepass revised the number to 62 after confirming the presence of an additional passenger. The crash site, in the city of Vinhedo, saw no injuries on the ground despite the plane striking part of a residential property.
Investigators have recovered the aircraft’s black box, which contains vital voice recordings and flight data. Brazil’s aviation accident investigation center, Cenipa, expects to release a preliminary report within 30 days. The cause of the crash remains unclear, but the last data transmission from the plane indicated a rapid loss of altitude shortly before impact.
Emergency crews have recovered the remains of all 62 victims, who included 34 males and 28 females. Among the passengers were three Venezuelans and one Portuguese woman, all with dual citizenship. The bodies have been moved to São Paulo’s police morgue for identification, where officials are using seat assignments, documents, and personal belongings to help identify the deceased.
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