Aircraft crash on Caribbean island kills at least 12 people, including popular Honduran musician Aurelio Martinez
At least 12 people, including a popular musician, died Monday when a small plane quickly crashed into the Caribbean after taking off from Roatan, Honduras, officials said. Lanhsa Airlines set off from Roatan, one of the major tourist attractions in Central American countries, to the port of La Ceiba in Honduras when nightfalls.
Civil aviation official Carlos Padilla said the plane “turned sharply to the right side of the runway,” said civil aviation official Carlos Padilla.
“The plane almost landed on us. I was fishing,” an unnamed fisherman told HCH TV.
The plane carried 17 passengers and crew, five of whom were rescued and hospitalized.
Honduras/Honduras policy through Reuters
A dramatic video posted by the National Police on social media showed rescuers taking survivors to the rocky coast. Another video shows a similar scene, with police reporting that as the rescue team continues to search, only one body remains missing.
Roatan Fire Chief Franklin Borjas told Reuters news agency that the survivors were taken to a nearby hospital but did not provide information about their condition. Bojas told Reuters that the terrain complicated the search and rescue efforts.
“It’s hard to get in contact with the accident (scene) because there is 30 meters of rock, you can’t get there while walking or swimming,” he told Reuters. “The divers who helped rescue have zero visibility.”
Among the victims were Aurelio Martínez, a former member of the Gary Funer race, a mixture of African and Indigenous heritage. Martinez also holds U.S. nationality. Helene Odile Guivarch, a French citizen, is one of the survivors.
Martínez originally came from the Gracias A Dios region of Honduras on the Caribbean coast of the country.
“We’re frustrated,” he said on Tuesday. “He’s the backbone of the family.”
Martínez was a member of Los Gatos Bravos and then formed his own group Lita Ariran. His first album, Garifuna Soul, brought him to Europe, the United States and the rest of the world.
“On the global stage, he is the greatest model in Honduras of Garifuna Music,” his nephew said.
“Martinez’s energy and passionate performances made him a pillar of La Cieba’s music scene, where he loved his most about his performance on Punta Rock, a high energy, a pop style that blends its roots, which suffered from Central America in the 1990s,” said Kennedy Center.
Mathew Imaging by Getty
According to police, 15 passengers were on the plane, and two pilots and a flight attendant were also on the plane.
Police statement said the crash occurred about half a mile from the island’s coast and was caused by a “obvious mechanical failure” of the British-made Jetstream 41.
Honduras President Xiomara Castro said she “immediately activates” an emergency committee composed of armed forces, firefighters and others to assist the accident victims.
Contributed to this report.
