Lockheed C-130H Hercules

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

BOGOTÁ (Worthy News) – Scores of Colombian soldiers were feared dead and dozens injured after a military transport plane crashed shortly after takeoff in the country’s remote southern Amazon region, officials said Monday, as Colombia’s defense minister urged prayers for those affected in the largely Catholic country.

“This event is profoundly painful for the country,” Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said. “We hope that our prayers can help to relieve some of the pain.”

The Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules aircraft went down near the jungle town of Puerto Leguízamo, close to the border with Peru, while transporting troops, Sánchez confirmed.

Maj. Gen. Carlos Fernando Silva, chief of the Colombian Air Force, said the plane was carrying 11 air force personnel and 114 soldiers.

At least 48 injured people had been rescued and taken for treatment, Silva said, but officials did not immediately confirm the number of survivors or fatalities.

RESCUE EFFORTS UNDERWAY IN REMOTE REGION

Authorities said rescue teams were deployed to the crash site, though operations were complicated by the remote jungle terrain and limited infrastructure.

Video footage reviewed by Worthy News appeared to show residents of Puerto Leguízamo stepping in to assist emergency efforts, using motorcycles to evacuate wounded soldiers from the crash site.

President Gustavo Petro described the crash as a “horrific accident that should never have happened.”

In a lengthy statement, Petro said efforts to modernize Colombia’s military fleet had been hindered by “bureaucratic difficulties.”

“If the civil or military administrative officials are not up to this challenge, they must be removed,” he said.

LEADERS REACT TO “HORRIFIC ACCIDENT”

Political leaders across the country also expressed condolences and called for a full investigation into the cause of the crash.

The cause of the accident was not immediately known.

Defense Minister Sánchez said emergency teams had been dispatched and stressed the tragedy’s national impact.

Images circulating on social media showed a large plume of black smoke rising from the crash site, while soldiers and civilians rushed to assist survivors.

Lockheed Martin, the U.S. manufacturer of the C-130 aircraft, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

CAUSE UNKNOWN AS INVESTIGATION BEGINS

The crash comes weeks after another C-130 aircraft operated by the Bolivian Air Force went down in the city of El Alto, killing more than 20 people and injuring dozens.

It also follows a separate incident in the United States, where investigators are probing a collision between an Air Canada Express plane and a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia Airport late Sunday, which killed both pilots and injured numerous others.

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