A PLANE carrying 17 people has tragically crashed into the sea killing a popular music star.
Seven people died just minutes after the aircraft took off from Roatan Island in Honduras on Monday.
Several US nationals, a French citizen, and two children were all killed in the horror air disaster.
The popular Honduran musician and politician Aurelio Martinez Suazo was tragically found among the dead.
Lanhsa, a Honduran airline, was operating the Jetstream aircraft with 14 passengers and three crew members on board as reported by the country’s minister of transport.
This terrifying air disaster happened at 6:18pm just after leaving the Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport.
Dramatic images showed the desperate rescue mission launched by officials into the evening.
Heroic teams dragged survivors out of the water and onto the islands rocky coastline.
Roatan fire captain Franklin Borjas confirmed the death toll and revealed the adverse conditions rescuers faced off the island.
The transport minister, Borjas, mentioned the challenges faced in reaching the accident site due to a daunting 30-meter-high rock barrier, making it inaccessible by foot or swimming.
“The divers helping with the rescue have zero visibility.”
The cause of the deadly crash was not immediately clear.
Honduran President Xiomara Castro revealed an Emergency Operations Committee was immediately set up to aid the rescue mission.
Moreover, she highlighted the swift response of the rescue teams to the plane crash, which took place just 1 kilometer away from Roatán International Airport, as they are working tirelessly to aid in the tragic event.
Roatan, the largest of the Bay Islands just off the Honduran coast, is a popular tourist attraction and famed for its vibrant coral reefs.
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