A cargo plane crashed into a housing complex in Pakistan’s largest city soon after takeoff Sunday, setting off a huge blaze and killing all eight crew on board, the civil aviation authority said. Casualties on the ground appeared likely.
An Associated Press reporting team said several buildings were on fire and loud explosions were being heard. Fire trucks sprayed foam onto the crash site. As the flames died down, rescuers began searching through the destroyed buildings, looking for bodies or survivors.
TV footage showed several bodies at a local hospital.
The plane came down in an upscale housing complex for Naval officers.
Hundreds of people came to see the spectacle and film it with their cell phones, hampering access for emergency workers.
Witness Hasan Hashmi said fire could be seen from one of the plane’s engines as it flew overhead.
Aviation authority spokesman Pervais George said the Russian-made cargo plane was heading to Sudan when it came down two minutes after take off. He said the eight crew, believed to be mostly Pakistani, were dead.
Local television reported the plane was an Il-89, a multipurpose cargo plane that is often used for ferrying humanitarian aid to developing countries, as well as other large items.
The crash was the third in less than five months in Pakistan.
Earlier this month in Karachi, 21 people were killed when a small passenger plane crashed soon after take off.
In July, a passenger jet operated by Pakistan carrier Airblue crashed into hills overlooking the capital, Islamabad, during stormy weather, killing all 152 onboard.