At least 11 people have been killed after a Bolivian air force cargo plane crashed in the western city of El Alto, according to media reports quoting firefighters.
The incident happened at 18:15 local time (22:15 GMT) on Friday as the plane was arriving at El Alto’s airport from the city of Santa Cruz, aviation officials said. It reportedly skidded off the runway and hit nearby vehicles.
The defence ministry later confirmed its C-130 Hercules was involved and that it had been transporting banknotes to the Central Bank of Bolivia. It did not say how many people were on board, and gave no casualty numbers.
Police fired tear gas to disperse crowds allegedly trying to take the scattered banknotes.
Video footage showed people running away from the tear gas and police officers, some holding shields, forming a line. Some in the crowds are seen throwing rocks at police.
The crashed plane can be seen on the ground and badly damaged vehicles can be seen in other videos.
“I want to make it clear to those who are trying to take money from the plane involved in this tragedy that this money has no legal value since it has not been issued by the Central Bank and does not have a serial number, and that attempting to use this money is a crime,” the Minister of Defence, Marcelo Salinas, said.
“We also ask all those who are engaging in acts of vandalism in this area to refrain from doing so and to respect the mourning and grief we are experiencing at this difficult time.”
Firefighters working at the crash site said that at least 20 people were injured, local media reported.
El Alto International Airport was temporarily closed following the crash.
“My sister told me that she was in the car when the plane crashed. The plane’s tire fell on the car, and my sister was injured because the impact of the tire hit her on the head, so we rushed her to the hospital,” a man told the Reuters news agency.
It was not immediately clear what caused the crash, but some witnesses said the weather at the time was treacherous.
“A heavy hailstorm” was falling and “there was lightning” when the plane went down,” a woman whose car was struck by the aircraft wreckage told the AFP news agency.
An investigation into the incident is under way.
By BBC News
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