At least 31 killed as plane hits bridge, crashes in Taipei river

A dash-cam video captured the moment the plane hurtled out of control above the city's Nanhu Bridge before crashing into the Keelung River (Getty Images)

Story by CNN
Written by Euan McKirdy and Vivian Kam

A passenger plane clipped a bridge and plunged into a river in Taiwan on Wednesday, killing at least 31 people, according to the island's official news agency, CNA.

Rescuers scrambled to pull survivors from the submerged wreck of the ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop aircraft, which went down shortly after takeoff from Taipei, the Taiwanese capital.

Fifty-eight people were aboard TransAsia Airways Flight GE235 when it veered out of control as it flew to Kinmen, off the coast of the Chinese province of Xiamen.

The toll: 31 confirmed dead, 15 injured, including two on the ground, and 12 missing, officials said. The search and rescue effort continues.

The plane's pilot and two co-pilots were among those confirmed dead.

Crews later recovered the aircraft's "black boxes," said CNA, the island's official news agency. The flight data recorder and voice data recorder were found in the tail of the plane, Ang Xingzhong, the executive director of Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council, told the news agency.

Plane clips highway

A dash-cam video captured the moment the plane hurtled out of control above the city's Nanhu Bridge before crashing into the Keelung River, just after 11 a.m. local time (10 p.m. ET).

CNA reported that the pilot appeared to try to control the plane as it descended, but the aircraft's wing grazed the overpass, clipping a passing taxi.

The two people in the taxi were injured but are in stable condition after being taken to hospital, CNA said.

The news agency reported on the efforts of one father who was injured in the crash. The man, who was not identified, was aboard with his wife and 1-year-old baby. The father, upon learning that his wife and child had been sent to separate hospitals, rode a bike to find his wife and baby, CNA said.

The wife and baby are injured but did not suffer life-threatening wounds, doctors said, according to the news agency. The father was barely injured.

Rescuers in lifeboats pulled survivors from the water and the wreckage. Some passengers appeared to be wearing life jackets as they waited their turn to board rescue boats.

The military said it had 165 personnel and numerous vehicles nearby to assist rescue efforts if required.
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Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/04/asia/taiwan-plane-crash-transasia/index.html