Nigerian leader orders probe of jet crash (AP) Updated: 2005-10-26 16:18
Nigeria's president on Tuesday ordered tighter stricter safety and
maintenance procedures for all Nigerian aircraft and promised an exhaustive
probe into the cause of a weekend plane crash that killed 117 people.
Making his first public appearance since the accident late Saturday and death
of his wife only hours afterward, a somber President Olusegun Obasanjo told
Nigeria in a televised broadcast that he rued the pair of "tragic events."
"I have already ordered a full and thorough investigation into the cause of
the air crash with a view to ensuring that this sort of calamity does not repeat
itself," said Obasanjo.
"In addition, I have directed the aviation ministry to ensure strict
compliance with maintenance and operational requirements and standards for all
aircraft in order to plug loopholes and ensure passenger safety," he said.
The Bellview Airlines Boeing 737-200 had just left the airport at Lagos,
Nigeria's biggest city, for the capital, Abuja, when it crashed near Lissa,
about 30 miles north of the airport.
Initial reports indicated the plane lost contact with the control tower five
minutes after taking off and state radio said pilots issued a distress call
before the plane disappeared from radar.
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday that it sent a
five-member team to assist in the investigation of the crash. The announcement
came a day after Nigeria asked for U.S. help in the probe.
The 50-minute flight to Abuja was a popular route among Nigerians and
expatriates. Airline officials said 117 people were on board — 111 passengers
and six crew members.
The nationalities of all those aboard were not immediately known, but most
were believed to be Nigerians. A U.S. Army major assigned to the Office of
Defense Cooperation at the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria was among them, U.S. military
officials said Tuesday. He was identified as Maj. Joseph J. Haydon, 40, of
Fredericksburg, Va.
Obasanjo's 59-year old wife, Stella, died early Sunday after undergoing
treatment earlier in the week at a cosmetic surgery clinic in the Spanish resort
town of Marbella. Coroners performed an autopsy, but there was no word on the
exact cause of death. Her body was returned to Nigeria late
Tuesday.
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