Algeria: Military plane crash kills 257 people

By Sarah El Sirgany and Angela Dewan, CNN

(CNN) -- At least 257 people have been killed in a military plane crash near Algeria's capital, Algiers, state media reported.

The aircraft crashed near the Boufarik air base, between Algiers and the city of Bilda. Ten of those killed were the plane crew, according to state-run Radio Algérie.

It was not immediately clear whether there were any survivors.

TV station Ennahar showed images of smoke rising from the plane's fuselage, tilted to one side, with part of the aircraft sticking out above olive trees. Dozens of bodies were seen in numbered bags as paramedics and firefighters worked at the crash site. Cranes at the site have begun trying to move some of the debris.

Video shows thick smoke rising from scene of Algerian military plane crash as emergency services arrive at the site. At least 100 people were killed, officials say. https://t.co/2ruQg5bPk1pic.twitter.com/V2OFy5SoZE

— ABC News (@ABC) April 11, 2018

One man told Ennahar he was at home when he heard an explosion, and drove with a neighbor to the site, where they tried to put out the fire and reach victims.

"We saw bodies ... it was a catastrophe," he said.

"We were afraid the plane would explode. We covered some bodies and put out some fires."

Algeria has a shaky aviation safety record.

In 2014, a Hercules C-130 carrying members of the country's air force and their families crashed in Algeria's east, killing 77 people.

That same year, an Air Algérie flight crashed in Mali while flying between Bukina Faso and Algeria, killing all 116 people on board.

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