149 dead in plane crash at Madrid airport

MADRID, Spain - A Spanish airliner bound for the Canary Islands at the height of the vacation season crashed, burned and broke into pieces Wednesday while trying to take off from Madrid, killing 149 people on board, officials said.

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There were only 26 survivors in the mid-afternoon crash, said Spanish Development Minister Magdalena Alvarez, whose department is in charge of civil aviation. It was Spain's deadliest air disaster in more than 20 years.

A police officer said the bodies were so hot that police could barely touch them and told El Pais newspaper the shattered wreckage bore no resemblance to a plane.

Dozens of ambulances rushed to the site as columns of smoke billowed from the wreckage. The prime minister broke off his vacation in southern Spain and rushed back to Madrid, heading straight for the airport


What a tragedy!

yes i know, and all flights are closed for another day.. lucky my mom wasnt on that plane.. shes still in spain.. =|

That plane was going from Spanish island towards Madrid so even if she was traveling same day that island is on the other side of the Spain not towards Canada.

Right, i dont know much about it.

but yeah, 153 dead now .. thats horrible =(

That's bigger part of passengers!Humber might grow because people that survived are in critical condition,

what a tragedy. Those people and their families are in my prayers.