Cash Transport Plane Carrying New Banknotes Crashes During Landing in Bolivia
President: "National Mourning Declared... Ordered Transparent Investigation"
A tragic incident occurred in Bolivia, a South American country, when a cash transport aircraft carrying banknotes crashed. Dozens of people were killed in the accident, but rescue operations were hampered as crowds gathered at the scene to collect the banknotes.
According to foreign media such as the Associated Press, the accident took place at approximately 6:15 p.m. local time on the 27th of last month near El Alto Airport in La Paz, the capital of Bolivia. At the time, a C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft belonging to the Bolivian Air Force crashed. The transport plane, which was attempting to land at the airport, veered off the runway and struck cars passing by on a nearby road.
On the 27th of last month, a military transport aircraft crashed near El Alto International Airport, close to La Paz, the capital of Bolivia, with soldiers and police guarding the accident site. Photo by EPA Yonhap News
The accident resulted in the deaths of 22 people, including one crew member, and injuries to 29 others. Most of the victims were civilians in the vehicles struck by the crashed aircraft. Authorities are in the process of identifying the victims.
At the time of the accident, the C-130 was transporting 17.1 million newly issued banknotes. After the crash, the new bills spilled out of the aircraft and were scattered across the ground, drawing hundreds of citizens to the scene. The sight of crowds scrambling to collect the cash quickly spread on social media, sparking controversy.
To manage the situation, 500 soldiers and 100 police officers were deployed, and 12 citizens who persisted in gathering money were eventually arrested by the police. Authorities collected all the banknotes retrieved from the site and burned them in a bonfire. When some citizens attempted to approach the burning site, tear gas was used to keep them away.
Despite these measures, authorities estimate that approximately 30% of the banknotes, about 5.13 million bills, had already been stolen. David Espinoza, Governor of the Central Bank of Bolivia, warned, "Banknotes with confirmed serial numbers will be considered counterfeit."
Meanwhile, on March 1, following the tragedy, the Bolivian government declared a national period of mourning. In a post on his official X (formerly Twitter) account, President Rodrigo Paz stated, "We will fly flags at half-mast for three days to mourn the victims and comfort their families," and added, "We will provide all necessary support to the affected families and have instructed the authorities to conduct a transparent investigation to clarify the circumstances of the incident."
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