[Scene video +] "Survivor found on the tail of the fuselage...Consciousness"

[Anchor]
A passenger plane carrying 175 passengers hit a wall and caught fire at Muan International Airport in Jeollanam-do during landing.

The death toll is estimated to be around 60.

Let's go to the fire department briefing site at Muan Airport.

[Interview]
I would like to express my sincere condolences to the bereaved families who were victimized in this accident. Today's accident occurred around 09:03 on December 29, 2024 at Muan-gun International Airport in Jeollanam-do. The total number of people on the plane was 181, with 175 passengers and 6 crew members on board. The cause of this accident is estimated to be bad weather such as the occurrence of Bird Strike, and the exact cause will be announced later through a joint investigation with related agencies. As of 12:41 today, 85 people have sadly died in this accident.

We rescued two injured people and transferred them to a local hospital. The victims of
are moving to a temporary morgue while checking the exact location. The Jeonnam Fire Headquarters operated an emergency rescue control team as soon as the accident occurred, and a total of 700 people, including nearby local governments such as Jeollanam-do, Gwangju, and Jeonbuk, police, coastal police, and military units, are mobilized to search for the accident quickly. So far, firefighters and rescue workers have been dispatched to extinguish and rescue the fire, and we will do our best to quickly rescue and recover from the accident. In the future, we will inform the people of the confirmed damage situation and the exact cause of the accident as soon as possible. We will have another second briefing here in two hours. I'll finish the briefing and take questions.

[Reporter]
Is this the first or second briefing?

[Interview]
The first round was done by me to the bereaved families. It's the first round here. The bereaved families were so curious that I explained it on the way up.

[Reporter]
I think you just said that about 80 people died, so please check again if it's right.

[Interview]
So far, there are 80 people. So far, there are 35 men. It was estimated that the woman was 45 minutes.

[Reporter]
As far as I know, we're working on the scene right now, do you think there's a chance there's an additional survivor?

[Interview]
We're doing our best to search. I'd like to tell you that I'm sorry.

[Reporter]
If only about 80 people have been confirmed dead and the rest have not been confirmed, the rest will be rescued inside...

[Interview]
The fuselage of the plane itself is severely damaged, so it is difficult to express that it is in the fuselage because it is scattered a lot and the fuselage is severely damaged. The condition of the fuselage was damaged a lot.

[Reporter]
Until when will the accident site be controlled?

[Interview]
Our fire department plans to do it when all the victims are recovered. We will discuss it with the Muan Airport official once again and resume it as soon as possible.

[Reporter]
When will the fire be put out?

[Interview]
The fire control is over long ago.

[Reporter]
So how is the rescue going?

[Interview]
The most important thing right now is to go into the scene with special rescue teams, police, and firefighters. It's taking some time because we have to mark each victim's location and transfer them. I think that process is the most important. At first, the person I transferred did not mark it accurately, but now, in the situation where we are rescuing, we are in state, confirming that the victim has been sacrificed in a certain location and in a certain part of the plane.

[Reporter]
I think you came here after saying that you can't identify yourself properly. Is it because the location is not confirmed?

[Interview]
It's a pity if you look at it, it's hard to check exactly. Once again, I will check with the airport official and announce it. Only that side of the tail is shaped, and the rest of the part is hard to recognize.

[Reporter]
Please tell me the gender of the injured person.

[Interview]
The injured are one male and one female.

[Reporter]
Where did you rescue them?

[Interview]
I rescued it from the tail side.

[Reporter]
Are the two injured people on board?

[Interview]
We also have flight attendants.

[Reporter]
There are two crew members? Or the captain?

[Interview]
I think I need to check the details. I'm the head of the Muan Fire Station at Jeonnam Headquarters. We operated three stages at the same time after encountering the accident. We've mobilized a nearby rescue team.

[Reporter]
What's going on with the identification?

[Interview]
I'm Kim Seong-cheol, head of the Muan-gun Health Center. First of all, it's a pity that this happened. I'll report it to you. Of the total 181 passengers on board, 80 were confirmed, two were injured, and 99 were missing as of 12:41 p.m. The two injured were evacuated to Mokpo Korean Hospital and Mokpo Central Hospital. And this is the man who was evacuated to a Korean hospital. This person will be taken to Ewha Womans University Hospital in Seoul by the opinion of his guardian. That's about it. Currently, a temporary shelter has been set up at the site and is being evacuated this way. And we will set up a temporary morgue on the first floor of this airport to evacuate all identifiable deaths, and then take them to the funeral home after the guardians are identified there.

[Reporter]
It was said that 181 passengers were on board, but it is correct that 181 passengers were on board.

[Interview]
Yes, that's right. The accident process was not exactly explained, but I understood that the accident occurred during the crash. What happened to the process leading to the fire.

[Interview]
I'm looking into it. I think we need to investigate again how the fire broke out now. I'll announce it as soon as it's confirmed.

[Reporter]
There seem to be quite a few people on the lawn around the runway, are you searching all of them?

[Interview]
That's right. We're divided into three districts, one, two, and three, and we're selecting the person in charge at the chief level. Police and military units are also mobilized to guard and search nearby.

[Reporter]
The confirmation of the deaths is being delayed, but where exactly did it come from and was it delayed to confirm that?

[Interview]
That's right. It's going through a process of marking which side the victim was sacrificed.

[Reporter]
You're not trying to rescue, but you've switched to probation, right?

[Interview]
That's right. That's as much as I can.

[Reporter]
For those who describe them as missing...

[Interview]
As I said earlier, the shock was so severe that I think I need to search the surroundings again.

[Reporter]
Are all the dead identified?

[Interview]
The list of passengers is checked at the airport. Has the deceased been identified?

[Interview]
I'm still checking it.

[Reporter]
Are you saying that only the number of people who died has been confirmed and the specific identification has not yet been confirmed?

[Interview]
That's right. Identifying at the scene.

[Interview]
The procedure is being delayed because the damage was caused by the impact on the runway.

[Interview]
The aircraft fuselage is damaged, so it does not form a shape. Only the tail part remains in shape. I'll check again and let you know.

[Reporter]
Where do I investigate the cause of the accident?

[Interview]
The airport corporation... It's hard for me to say. Once again, please ask questions when briefing at the airport.

[Reporter]
About 700 people are here earlier, what's the composition?

[Interview]
Fire, police, military units, Muan-gun, Gwangju Fire Headquarters, Central Rescue Headquarters, Coast Guard, and related agencies were all mobilized. I'll brief you again in two hours.

[Reporter]
Where did you set up the temporary shelter?

[Interview]
A temporary shelter will be arranged at the scene of the accident. right on the lawn

[Reporter]
Was the airport construction included when the firepower was mobilized?

[Interview]
An airport official also came to the site.

[Reporter]
What time did you come?

[Interview]
I can't tell you the time.

[Interview]
I'm checking it right now. We will brief you again in two hours as soon as we confirm it. You just estimated the cause of the accident, what is the basis for the estimation?

[Interview]
The reason for the estimation was that there was a bit of a control tower that was radioed at the airport.

[Reporter]
If you look at the contents of the control tower's transmission, there is an engine problem.

[Reporter]
Let me ask you one more question. Can you tell me the time since the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's investigation team or the airport investigation team when the firepower was mobilized?

[Interview]
I'll check that time and let you know.

[Reporter]
Can you give me a rough idea of the contents of the control tower?

[Interview]
I think it's better to tell you that at the airport. I think it would be good to check the exact cause of the accident again from the airport corporation and tell you. In two hours, I will give you a rough idea of the start of the accident and the stage in which you responded.

[Reporter]
Did the Jeonnam Fire Headquarters report it to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport? When did you report it?

[Interview]
I think I need to check it again because it's done in the office. I'll do it like this. It's not 2 hours. Let's do it like this. When the airport corporation is ready, why don't we do it then? I'll let the representatives of the press corps know the time.

[Reporter]
Are you both transferring to Seoul?

[Interview]
He's in Mokpo. One of them is toward Seoul.

[Interview]
Let me tell you about the two injured. One man will be taken to a Korean hospital and taken to Seoul National University Hospital according to the will of his guardian. And one person is a woman who is being hospitalized at Mokpo Central Hospital. That's about it.

[Reporter]
Status?

[Interview]
The condition is considered to be severe.

[Reporter]
Who is the serious one and who is the minor one?

[Interview]
That's the case for both of you. It's more serious than Gyeongsang. It's weaker than a serious injury.

[Reporter]
How old are you?

[Interview]
He's 22 years old.

[Reporter]
What year were you born?

[Interview]
22. For women, it's 25.

[Reporter]
What year were you born?

[Reporter]
It's not like your life is in critical condition, is it?

[Interview]
That's right. No casual passengers were injured. Is the male flight attendant a Korean soldier?

[Interview]
It's a Korean hospital and I'm going to be evacuated to Ewha Womans University Hospital.

[Reporter]
You described it as a missing person earlier, but you just said there were no missing people, so do we just need to know that all of them are dead?

[Interview]
As of 12:41, 80 people have been evacuated from the scene to a temporary morgue. And there are two injuries. There are 99 people missing, and survivors are being identified. I see. Until the date of birth, we will check the year of birth and report it to you at a later briefing.

[Reporter]
Where were they found?

[Interview]
It was found on the tail of the fuselage. I was conscious. As far as I know, the part where the fuselage is over the runway boundary, not the runway, should be checked with the airport corporation. Then, we will adjust our opinions with the airport later and contact the reporters as much as possible. I'll announce it again then.