©picture alliance/dpa | Jörn Hüneke
Tragic news has reached us from Germany.
Two men were killed when a small plane crashed into a house in Ganderkesee, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The victims were 65 and 77 years old and were from Bremen. This was reported by the police following a rescue operation that lasted several hours.
What exactly happened?
At around 11 a.m., the aircraft suddenly lost altitude and crashed onto the roof of a single-family home in the Oldenburg district, near Bremen. It is not yet clear exactly how this could have happened. Emergency services responded in large numbers and used, among other things, a turntable ladder to search the roof and the wreckage of the aircraft.
Two fatalities
Initially, one fatality was confirmed, and a search was underway for a second occupant. It was not until later in the day that the two victims were recovered from the wreckage, after which the police revised the death toll to two. According to the authorities, the rescue and recovery operations were particularly complex and took several hours.
Residents fortunately not home
The residents of the affected house were not at home at the time of the crash. According to the police, no one else was injured. As a precaution, homes in the immediate vicinity were temporarily evacuated, although the police stated there was no danger to the wider area.
The cause of the accident remains unclear at this time. Investigators are working with the German Aviation Accident Investigation Bureau to determine why the plane suddenly lost altitude and crashed into the residential area.
©picture alliance/dpa | Jörn Hüneke