At least eight people died when a plane carrying 27 people and conveying the body of the former Ondo State governor, Olusegun Agagu, crashed this morning at the Murtala Muhammed airport in Lagos immediately after take-off.
Scroll down to see more pictures and watch a video made at the crash site
The charter flight took off at about 09:30 from the domestic terminal at Lagos Murtala Mohammed International Airport.
Officials said the plane crashed on to open land within the airport complex close to a fuel storage a minute after take-off.
Spokesman for the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Supo Atobatele, added that the engine of the jet had failed on takeoff and it crash-landed and burst into flames.
Aviation Ministry spokesman, Joe Obi, added that the plane nose-dived into a building in the area: "The plane couldn't lift properly so it just came down."
Spokesperson of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, Yakubu Datti, told Al Jazeera that there are five survivors. They have been rushed to a nearby hospital, he added.
Datti confirmed that the Black Box of the aircraft have been recovered and investigation will commence immediately.
One of the eyewitnesses, Ahmad Safian, told the BBC: "I heard a loud bang and then there was lots of black smoke. The security forces rushed straight to the scene. I saw three bodies removed from the wreckage."
He also said the road to the airport was blocked for a short time but operations were continuing as normal at the airport.
Spokesperson of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, Yakubu Datti, told Al Jazeera that there are five survivors. They have been rushed to a nearby hospital, he added.
Datti confirmed that the Black Box of the aircraft have been recovered and investigation will commence immediately.
One of the eyewitnesses, Ahmad Safian, told the BBC: "I heard a loud bang and then there was lots of black smoke. The security forces rushed straight to the scene. I saw three bodies removed from the wreckage."
He also said the road to the airport was blocked for a short time but operations were continuing as normal at the airport.
The passengers
An Associated Airline jet was carrying seven crew and 20 passengers to Akure, Ondo state, spokesman for the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency said.
The passengers were heading for the burial of former Ondo State governor, Olusegun Agagu. An Associated Airline jet was carrying seven crew and 20 passengers to Akure, Ondo state, spokesman for the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency said.
The jet was conveying the body of Agagu, who passed away September 13, 2013.
Some of the passengers who died in the air crash are believed to be family members of the late governor and officials of Ondo state government.
According to the latest reports, Agagu’s first son, Feyi, was in the plane crash, but his status could not be confirmed. However, Agagu’s wife was not in the plane crash. She and Agagu’s brother, Femi, and others arrived Akure earlier in a separate flight.
While the plane was about to leave the Lagos airport, Ondo State government officials, including Governor Olusegun Mimiko, as well as other members of Agagu’s family gathered at the Akure airport waiting for the corpse of the former governor. They have moved to the Ondo government house after hearing of the tragedy.
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