The 10 people killed when a small jet crashed in central Mexico while attempting an emergency landing have been identified, as authorities continue to investigate what caused the fatal incident.
The aircraft went down south of Toluca International Airport shortly after 12:30 p.m. local time on Tuesday, Dec. 16, according to a statement from Mexico’s Secretary of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation.
Speaking at a Tuesday press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum said the victims were members of the same family traveling from Acapulco to Mexico City, according to Mexico News Daily.
Authorities identified eight passengers, including three children: Natalia, 2; Raúl, 4; and Ximena, 9, Mexico News Daily and La Gaceta reported.
The adult passengers who died were identified as Gustavo Palomino Olet, 50; Ilse Lizeth Hernández Téllez, 32; Raúl Gómez Ruiz, 60; Raúl Gómez Buenfil, 31; and Olga Janine Buenfil Cardone, 60.
The pilot, Juan Carlos Olivares Casas, 61, and co-pilot, Walding Sánchez Manzano, 72, were also killed.
Flight records showed the jet took off at 12:02 p.m. and crashed at 12:31 p.m., according to La Gaceta. Reports said the pilot contacted the control tower minutes before the crash to report a malfunction.
As the jet attempted to land at a soccer field in San Mateo Atenco—about 32 miles west of Mexico City—it struck the metal roof of a nearby business and sparked a large fire, according to The Telegraph, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and the Associated Press.
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Images from the scene showed emergency crews working near a badly damaged warehouse and a scorched stretch of the adjacent soccer field.
Ana Muñiz, the mayor of San Mateo Atenco, told Milenio Television that the fire prompted the evacuation of roughly 130 people from the surrounding area, according to reports.
Sheinbaum said at Tuesday’s press conference that the crash appeared to stem from “a technical failure,” Mexico News Daily reported. The cause remains under investigation.
“The Federal Civil Aviation Agency (AFAC), the Directorate of Aviation Accident and Incident Analysis (DAAIA) and the Directorate of Air Navigation Services in Mexican Airspace (SENEAM) are conducting the corresponding investigation,” the Secretary of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation said in its statement.
Authorities have been contacted for additional information.
