Cargo Plane Carrying Money Crashes In Bolivia, Killing 15; Onlookers Chase After Bills

LA PAZ, Bolivia — A cargo level carrying money collapsed Friday adjacent Bolivia’s capital, sidesplitting astatine slightest 15 people, damaging vehicles and sending onlookers chasing aft nan scattering banknotes and hindering rescue efforts, an charismatic said.

Defense Minister Marcelo Salinas said nan Hercules C-130 level was transporting recently printed Bolivian rate erstwhile it “landed and veered disconnected nan runway” astatine an airdrome successful El Alto, a metropolis adjacent to La Paz, nan administrative capital, earlier ending up successful a adjacent field. Firefighters put retired nan flames that engulfed nan aircraft.

Fire main Pavel Tovar said astatine slightest 15 group died but he did not explain whether nan dormant were passengers aboard nan level aliases successful nan cars connected nan adjacent highway.

Salinas did not specify really galore group had been killed successful nan clang and said nan origin was being investigated.

Bolivian Air Force Gen. Sergio Lora said 2 of nan plane’s six unit members had not been recovered arsenic of precocious Friday, adding that nan craft was arriving from nan eastbound metropolis of Santa Cruz.

Images connected societal media showed debris from nan aircraft, destroyed cars and bodies scattered connected nan road. According to Tovar, astatine slightest 15 vehicles were damaged.

The plane, belonging to nan Bolivian aerial force, was transporting money to La Paz, and images connected societal media showed group rushing to cod nan bills scattered astatine nan clang site, while constabulary successful riot cogwheel tried to disperse nan crowd.

Tovar said nan hundreds of group trying to cod nan spilled bills were hindering rescue efforts.

More than 500 soldiers and 100 constabulary officers took power of nan area to disperse nan crowd, according to charismatic reports. Police and subject unit burned nan rate boxes successful nan beingness of Central Bank President David Espinoza, who said nan bills “have nary ineligible worth because they ne'er entered circulation,” without clarifying what that meant.

Espinoza did not specify nan magnitude of money being transported, but he said nan banknotes had arrived successful Santa Cruz from abroad.

Authorities temporarily suspended each flights to and from nan terminal.