Plane crash in Colombia kills all 15 people on board

BOGOTA

A small plane crashed Wednesday in northeast Colombia, killing all 15 people on board, including a member of congress.

The Secretary of Citizen Security of Norte de Santander, George Quintero, told the Noticias Caracol television program that the wreckage was found by farmers in the rural area of Curasica in the municipality of Playa de Belen.

Quintero said 13 passengers and two crew members lost their lives and that several search and rescue teams were dispatched to the area.

Norte de Santander Governor William Villamizar Laguado said that “unfortunately, we have to report that the small aircraft was found in the upper part of a protected area in the municipality of La Playa. We have received the first images, and it appears there are no survivors. Seven bodies have been recovered and the search for the others is ongoing.”

Among those killed was Diogenes Quintero Amaya, a member of the House of Representatives known as a leading voice for victims of displacement in the Catatumbo region.

The Beech 1900D aircraft, operated by Colombia's state-owned airline Satena, had disappeared from radar screens near the town of La Playa de Belen in the Norte de Santander department.

The plane was en route to the city of Ocana in Norte de Santander and was scheduled to land at 12.10 pm local time.