UPDATE - At least 26 rescued after plane crashes into Lake Victoria in Tanzania

UPDATES WITH NUMBER OF PEOPLE RESCUED; ADDS DETAILS; REVISES HEADLINE, DECK; EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Kizito Makoye

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (AA) – At least 26 people have been rescued after a passenger plane plunged into Lake Victoria in Tanzania on Sunday morning.

There were 43 people – 39 passengers, two pilots, and two cabin crew – aboard the Precision Air plane, according to regional commissioner Albert Chalamila.

He said the rescue operation is still ongoing.

Tanzanian authorities have yet to confirm if there were any casualties.

In a brief statement, Precision Air said flight number PW494 heading from the commercial hub Dar es Salaam to Bukoba “was involved in an accident as it was approaching Bukoba Airport.”

The plane fell into Lake Victoria at around 10.50 a.m. local time (0750GMT).

Bukoba Airport is located on the lake’s shore, and the crash site is just a few hundred meters from the runway, according to local officials.

Videos circulating on social media show the plane’s submerged yellow and green fuselage surrounded by rescue boats.

Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who is currently on a visit to China, called for “calm as rescue operations continue.”

“I have received with profound shock the news of the accident involving a passenger plane belonging to Precision Air in Lake Victoria. I send my most sincere sympathy to the victims,” she said on Twitter.