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Last update - 20:08 20/08/2008
More than 140 people killed in Madrid plane crash
By The Associated Press
Tags: Canary Islands, plane crash 

More than 140 people were killed Wednesday when a Spanish airliner bound for the Canary Islands crashed and caught fire while trying to take off from Madrid's Barajas airport.

Spanair Flight JK5022, carrying 173 people to the popular vacation destination off the West African coast during the height of Spain's summer vacation season, sped off the end of the runway and crashed, breaking into pieces, the newspaper El Pais quoted an airport official as saying.

The plane's takeoff had been an hour late due to technical problems. It eventually managed to get slightly off the ground but crashed near the end of the runway, the paper said, quoting an employee of the national airport authority AENA.
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Helicopters and fire trucks dumped water on the plane, which ended up in a wooded area at the end of the runway at Terminal 4. Thick columns of white smoke billowed from the scene.

Crews were removing the injured as well as the bodies of the dead, an official with the Madrid emergency rescue service SAMUR said, calling it a catastrophe. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to give his name.

Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero interrupted his vacation in
southern Spain to travel straight to Madrid airport, his office said.

A makeshift morgue was being set up at the city's main convention center,
officials said.

The plane was an MD-82 on a codeshare flight to Las Palmas with Lufthansa's LH255, Spanair said. Departures from Madrid's airport were suspended for several hours before resuming.


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      1.   Were any of the victims Jewish? 21:31  |  Concerned Human 20/08/08
      2.   At least Spanish newspapers ... 21:59  |  HS 20/08/08
      3.   the plane crash 23:45  |  D 20/08/08
      4.   What sickens me most about 1 is using this tragedy to peddle hate 23:50  |  disgusted 20/08/08
      5.   Airline responsible 00:29  |  Steve 21/08/08
      6.   #1 what a strange response! 00:34  |  an Israeli 21/08/08
      7.   Condolences to families 4 loss 00:35  |  an Israeli 21/08/08
      8.   #1 00:59  |  Chaval 21/08/08
      9.   The dead toll up to now 01:00  |  KUTW 21/08/08
      10.   I`ll take my hat off to #4 disgusted... 01:52  |  Concerned Human 21/08/08
      11.   #4 You`d span over Spanish press .... 02:06  |  HS 21/08/08
      12.   Nationality of passengers 02:19  |  Peter 21/08/08
      13.   number 1 wasn`t a Jew at all, just a trouble maker 08:43  |  x-ray 21/08/08
      14.   #1 they were human beings 09:03  |  SJ 21/08/08
      15.   9. Concerned Human 09:32  |  KUTW 21/08/08
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