The Red Cross representatives confirmed the information about the casualties, local El Periodico newspaper reported.
DEVELOPING: A plane presumed to have been carrying twelve passengers crashed Guanacaste, Costa Rica, authorities say. pic.twitter.com/KqBnJgwEqw
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) 31 декабря 2017 г.
The aircraft, which was carrying 2 pilots from Costa Rica, and 10 passengers, reportedly belongs to local Nature Air airline.
Plane with 12 aboard "crashes and burns" in Costa Rica https://t.co/TBNRWE1hfU pic.twitter.com/bpEdwLgeJ7
— HuffPost (@HuffPost) 31 декабря 2017 г.
The Costa Rican government reported that a plane with 10 US citizens and two local crewmembers crashed in a wooded area.
Small plane carrying at least 12 people, mainly foreigners, crashed in mountainous region of #CostaRica, several killed https://t.co/ycbXtwHSzJ pic.twitter.com/UOIovkrXi0
— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) 31 декабря 2017 г.
Local authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the deadly incident. The reason for the crash has not yet been reported, the country's security officials said. The plane had fallen in a mountainous area of Punta Islita, some 230 km (140 miles) west of the capital of San José, one of the most popular destination points for the tourists due to its pristine and spectacular landscapes.
Meantime, the US State Department confirmed US citizens' death in Sunday's plane crash in Costa Rica, a State Department spokesperson told Sputnik on Monday.
"We can confirm the death of multiple US citizens in an airplane crash in Costa Rica on December 31, 2017. We express our condolences to all those affected by this tragedy. We are in contact with Costa Rican aviation authorities and will continue to monitor the situation," the spokesperson said.
The State Department is ready to provide all the appropriate consular assistance to affected US citizens, the spokesperson added.
