Nigeria plane crash recovery operation faces difficulties

Search and rescue teams in Nigeria’s Ondo state are continuing in efforts to recover the bodies of victims of Monday’s military aircraft crash which killed all 25 people on board, including civilians.

Rescue operations have been hampered by the fact that the plane crashed into a swampy area that is difficult to access.

Local media are reporting the wreckage is submerged. Sources at the scene are saying mangroves and murky water have made operations difficult but divers are working at the site.

As a result, the black boxes, which help determine what led to the crash, are yet to be found and it is unclear if any bodies have been recovered.

Local resident, Omotayo Orimisan, who has been assisting in the search and rescue operation, said villagers saw the plane crash.

"The plane flew from that side of town towards the other side of the creek, then its tail broke off with a loud noise,” he said.

“It touched the water, then lifted off again, then nosedived into the forest on the other side of the creek. It was as if a loud thunderstorm had struck.”

Villagers rushed to the scene in their boats to try and rescue the passengers.

“We tried to find the plane but we didn't see it,"  said Ormisan.

“The rescue team have not rested, they have been going about it since yesterday without rest to ensure they can bring the people in the plane out,” said Felisia Michel, another villager.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Monday declared three days of national mourning following what is one of the country’s worst air disasters in recent years.