Recovery efforts at the site of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) aircraft crash in Igbokoda, Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State, have been hampered by the swampy terrain, with the wreckage still partially submerged, the state police command has said.
The Ondo State Commissioner of Police, Felix Ohagwu, disclosed this on Tuesday after visiting the crash site, where he said difficult access through creeks and mangroves had slowed efforts to recover the aircraft and the remains of those on board.
Ohagwu said he had to use a canoe to reach the area and that police, Marine Police and other responders had remained at the scene since the crash. He added that authorities were awaiting heavier equipment capable of pulling the submerged wreckage from the water.
“We are still expecting a bigger machine to be able to pull the wreckage from the water,” the police commissioner said, adding that the command was also expecting support from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and other relevant agencies.
He said some body parts and fragments of the aircraft had been recovered, while no survivor had been found. Ohagwu also said clothes and human remains had been seen scattered around the crash site.
The Ondo State Government has meanwhile deployed swamp buggies to assist responders in reaching the deeply submerged wreckage. Commissioner for Health, Banji Ajaka, said conventional vehicles and boats could not adequately access the location because of the depth of the swamp.
Ajaka said divers were already working at the site and had recovered parts of the wreckage, while specialised equipment was being deployed to facilitate access to the aircraft and the recovery of the victims.
The ATR-42 aircraft, with tail number NGR 931, crashed in Igbokoda on Monday while on a routine mission from Benin City, Edo State, to Lagos. The Nigerian Air Force said the aircraft was involved in an accident and immediately activated search-and-rescue operations.
The NAF later said 25 people — 20 passengers and five crew members — were aboard the aircraft and that there were no survivors. Earlier information from the Ministry of Aviation had put the number at 32, comprising 25 passengers and seven crew members, although the discrepancy has not been officially explained.
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