Boeing 737 catches fire and skids off the runway at a Senegal airport, injuring 10 people
Dakar, May 9: A Boeing 737-300 plane carrying 85 people skidded off a runway at the airport in Senegal's capital, injuring 10 people, according to the transport minister, an airline safety group and footage from a passenger that showed the aircraft on fire.
“Our plane just caught fire,” wrote Malian musician Cheick Siriman Sissoko in a post on Facebook that showed passengers jumping down the emergency slides at night as flames engulfed one side of the aircraft at the airport in Dakar. In the background, people can be heard screaming.
Transport Minister El Malick Ndiaye said the Air Sénégal flight operated by TransAir was headed to Bamako, in neighbouring Mali, late Wednesday with 79 passengers, two pilots and four cabin crew.
The airport reopened on Thursday morning after closing overnight.
The injured were being treated at a hospital, while the others were taken to a hotel to rest. Boeing referred a request for comment to the airlines.
It was the third incident involving a Boeing airplane this week. Also on Thursday, 190 people were safely evacuated from a plane in Turkey after one of its tires burst during landing at a southern airport, Turkey's transportation ministry said.
The company has been under intense pressure since a door plug blew out of a Boeing 737 Max during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, leaving a gaping hole in the plane.
The Federal Aviation Administration in February gave Boeing 90 days to come up with a plan to fix quality problems and meet safety standards for building planes after the accident.
The incident has raised scrutiny of Boeing to the highest level since two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jets in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people.
About a dozen relatives of passengers who died in the second crash have been pushing the US government to revive a criminal fraud charge against the company by determining that Boeing violated terms of a 2021 settlement.
In April, a Boeing whistleblower, Sam Salehpour, testified at a congressional hearing that the company had taken manufacturing shortcuts to turn out 787s as quickly as possible that could lead to jetliners breaking apart.
The Aviation Safety Network, which tracks airline accidents, described the plane as a Boeing 737-38J.
The network published photos of the damaged plane in a grassy field, surrounded by fire suppressant foam, on X, formerly known as Twitter. One engine appeared to have broken apart and a wing was also damaged, according to the photos.
ASN is part of the Flight Safety Foundation, a nonprofit group that aims to promote safe air travel and tracks accidents.
🚨🚨Les faits se sont déroulés à 01h 14 minutes. Le ministre El Malick Ndiaye a ordonné au Bureau d’Enquete et d’Analyse (BEA) d’ouvrir une enquête pour déterminer les causes de l’accident. pic.twitter.com/sJTtfMmH2s
— mcsenegal1 (@McSenegal221) May 9, 2024
Transair Senegal Boeing 737-300 (6V-AJE, built 1994) was seriously damaged when it overran the landing runway at Dakar-Intl Airport(GOBD), Senegal. The left wing and engine caught fire but all 73 passengers were able to evacuate alive. There was unspecified number of injuries.… pic.twitter.com/SysgTSL3b8
— JACDEC (@JacdecNew) May 9, 2024
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CPI(M) alleges EC's inaction against BJP leaders’ anti-Muslim speeches despite complaints
New Delhi: Sitaram Yechury, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)), has accused the Election Commission (EC) of failing to address the BJP's alleged anti-Muslim speeches during the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. Yechury's accusations come despite multiple complaints lodged by his party.
Yechury claims that the BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have been inciting hatred against Muslims with their speeches, yet the EC has not taken any action despite receiving several complaints. He highlighted instances where BJP leaders violated the Model Code of Conduct.
One such instance cited by Yechury is Modi's speech in Rajasthan on April 21, where he allegedly made divisive remarks implying that the Congress planned to favor Muslims over other citizens. Yechury asserts that the EC's notice to BJP President JP Nadda regarding Modi's speech had little impact, as subsequent speeches continued to violate the poll code.
Yechury also pointed out recent speeches by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, alleging similar attempts to stoke communal tensions.
In his letter to the EC, Yechury urged decisive action against Modi, Adityanath, and Sarma, emphasizing that the impartiality and credibility of the EC could be compromised if it fails to address such violations, especially when they involve high-ranking officials.
The CPI(M) had previously lodged complaints with the EC regarding Modi's references to the Ram temple in Ayodhya and his labeling of the opposition as opponents of the temple.
Yechury's allegations underscore growing concerns over the influence of divisive rhetoric in Indian electoral politics and the role of the EC in ensuring fair and unbiased elections.
