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Many dead as plane door bursts open

KINSHASA(Congo) May 9. The rear door of a Russian-built cargo plane burst open as the aircraft carried police officials and their relatives across Congo, and 129 passengers were sucked out, airport officials said Friday.

Defense Minister, Irung Awan confirmed there was ``a technical problem'' with the plane's rear door but provided no details and did not confirm any deaths among the 200 people on board.

After the accident occurred some 45 minutes into the flight, the pilots managed to turn back and land the plane in Kinshasa, Mr. Awan said.

The plane, with its rear door missing, could be seen on the airport tarmac.

Two officials at the international airport in this central African country's capital here, independently said that 129 people were feared dead.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity. Nine survivors were being treated for minor injuries and psychological trauma at the Kinshasa General Hospital, said Kabamba Mbwebwe, chief doctor at the hospital's emergency ward.

``They were traumatised and spoke of their baggage flying everywhere,'' Dr. Mbwebwe said in a telephone interview. People in Africa often travel on modified cargo planes that have few seats, leaving most passengers to cram in among their belongings in the rear of the aircraft. The plane, a privately owned Ilyushin 76, apparently had been chartered to transport Congolese police and their families from Kinshasa to the southeastern city of Lubumbashi, a diamond centre.

AP

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