At least 41 people were killed when a Russian-built cargo plane crashed on Wednesday moments after taking off at the South Sudan capital's airport. Ateny Wek Ateny, the presidential spokesperson, said that the plane crash's only survivors were a cabin crew member and a child who were on-board, according to Reuters.
The plane crashed onto a small island in the White Nile River, which is close to the airport in Juba. There are numerous farming communities that reside on the island, and whether or not some of the victims were people on the ground when the plane crashed remains unclear, according to the Times of India.
A reporter for Al Jazeera, who was in Juba, said that the poor weather was obstructing the rescue efforts.
"It is raining hard here in Juba, making it difficult to look for more victims. The cargo plane was carrying passengers and it is believed that many of them were not wearing seat belts," Hiba Morgan said.
Ateny added that the plane had about 20 people on board, including crew members and "probably" 10 to 15 passengers. "We need to confirm how many people were on board."
