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An Aeromexico passenger jet has crashed after taking off in Mexico’s northern state of Durango, but the state’s governor said there have been no deaths.
The Mexico City-bound Embraer 190 jet was almost full, with 97 passengers and four crew members aboard, when it came down at around 4pm local time (21:00 GMT) on Tuesday, Gerardo Ruiz Esparza, Mexico’s minister for communications and transportation, wrote on Twitter.
It made an emergency landing about 10km from the airport for the state capital shortly after taking off, Alejandro Cardoza, a spokesman for the state’s civil protection agency, said on local television.
Cardoza said in an interview that around 85 people had been injured, some seriously, adding that a fire resulting from the accident had been put out and there were no reports of burn victims.
“Many managed to leave the plane on foot,” he said.
Durango Governor Jose Aispuro wrote in his Twitter account that “it is confirmed there were no fatalities in the accident.”
The operator of Durango airport, Grupo Aeroportuario Centro Norte, attributed the crash to bad weather conditions, citing preliminary reports.
TV images showed the severely damaged body of the plane emerging from scrubland and a column of smoke rising into the sky.
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto wrote on Twitter that he had instructed the ministries of defence, civil protection and transportation to respond to the crash.
