More
than 100 passengers had a miracle escape today after a plane overshot a runway
off the coast of Bali and crashed into the sea. Eyewitnesses said passengers
fearing for their lives screamed in panic as the Lion Air jet overshot the
runway at Ngurah Rai Airport, near Denparsar. The aircraft, carrying 101
passengers and seven crew members - then fell into the sea from a height of
about 50 metres.
Many of
the passengers escaped through emergency doors which opened half way along the
fuselage and made their way to the shore in inflatable yellow
dinghies.
After
being evacuated off the plane, they were taken to the airport terminal for
treatment.
Airport
officials said that several people were injured in the crash, but the extent of
their injuries were not known.
Lion
Air is currently banned from flying with the European Union because of concerns
over its safety levels.
Pictures from the scene show the passenger
jet with its distinctive red Lion name on the side lying partially submerged in
the water near rocks at the end of the runway.
The
plane had broken its back - the rear section drooped further into the water and
a large split could be seen in the last portion of the jet.
Other
passengers milled about at the airport as police and officials attempted to
establish what had happened to cause the jet to crash into the
sea.
Bali
Police Chief Arif Wahyunadi said: 'All passengers and crew have been taken off
the aircraft as it lies in the sea.
'They
are being attended to at the airport.'
I Made
Krisna Maharta, an official with Bali's search and rescue agency, said all of
the passengers and crew were safely rescued and that 22 people were taken to
three different hospitals with various injuries. He said initial reports showed
there were 101 passengers and seven crew members aboard the
plane.
Mr
Wahyunadi said the jet had originated in the city of Bandung, Indonesia's third
largest city - a tourist attraction because of its ancient
architecture
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