Tragic Plane Crash in Brazil Claims 62 Lives

An airplane carrying 58 passengers and four crew members tragically crashed in Brazil on Friday. The flight, operated by Voepass Linhas Aéreas, had taken off from Cascavel and was headed for São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport.

Cascavel is located in the state of Paraná, which is southwest of São Paulo. The airline mentioned that they did not have any information on the cause of the crash or the condition of those on board.

During an event on Friday, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva spoke to the crowd and stated that it appeared everyone on the flight had lost their lives, although he did not provide details on how he came to this conclusion.

The plane, identified as flight 2283, went down in the city of Vinhedo, according to Voepass Linhas Aéreas. Response teams, including firefighters and military police, have been mobilized to the area where the crash occurred, as per a post from the São Paulo government.

Footage captured by Brazil’s TV GloboNews showed scenes of fire and smoke rising from the crash site. Other videos showed the plane spiraling down before hitting the ground.

Since the plane was an ATR-72, which was built in Europe, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) do not have jurisdiction over this incident. However, Brazil has its own robust crash investigation team, according to the NTSB.