15 killed, dozens injured in military plane crash

लगानी न्यूज

१६ फाल्गुन २०८२, शनिबार १२:१८February 28, 2026

. At least 15 people were killed and dozens injured when a military cargo plane carrying cash crashed on landing near Bolivia’s administrative capital La Paz, officials said. After the accident, police had to use tear gas to take control of the situation as a crowd gathered on the road to collect the money.

The C-130 Hercules plane veered off the runway while landing at El Alto International Airport and crashed into a busy avenue.TAG_OPEN_div_30 Footage showed wreckage strewn across the road, several cars completely destroyed and several trucks damaged. Police fired tear gas to clear the strewn banknotes as onlookers scrambled to collect banknotes strewn across the street. Later, officers set fire to the crash site and burnt the money.

The cause of the accident was not immediately known.TAG_OPEN_div_28 Eyewitnesses said the weather was very bad at that time. Christina Chowk, a 60-year-old vendor, told AFP that there was heavy hail and lightning. The wreckage of the plane hit his car. “The tyres fell on us, my daughter was injured, she had a head injury,” he said.

Colonel Pavel Tovar of the National Fire Department said the death toll was between 15 and 16.TAG_OPEN_div_26 “We are recovering the bodies of those who died in the accident,” he said. At least 28 people were injured, the health ministry said.

Deaths were reported at both the airport premises and the avenue.TAG_OPEN_div_24 Bolivian Air Navigation and Airports Authority Nabol said the C-130 had taken off from the eastern city of Santa Cruz and crashed while landing at El Alto International Airport. Following the incident, the airport has been suspended.

The plane, built by Lockheed Martin, was carrying Bolivian banknotes, which were scattered after the crash.TAG_OPEN_div_22 In a statement, the defence ministry said the money was “not serial numbered and does not have legal or purchasing power”. “Its collection, possession or use is an offence,” the ministry said.

The La TAG_OPEN_div_20 Paz Prosecutor’s Office said it received information that some people had taken advantage of the chaos on the road following the crash. Prosecutor Luis Carlos Torres said 12 people had been arrested for questioning.

At the time of the accident, Chowk and his family were living inside the wrecked vehicle for fear of being robbed.TAG_OPEN_div_18 Hospitals in El Alto have started a blood donation drive to treat the injured.

At an altitude of 3,650 meters, La Paz is the highest administrative capital in the world, surrounded by Andean peaks.TAG_OPEN_div_16 The Ministry of Defence said it had launched a formal investigation into the incident.