530 international-bound passengers stranded at Mactan airport
LOOK: Korean Air flight #KE631 slid off the runway while landing at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport on Sunday, Oct. 23.
All 173 passengers were evacuated safely with minor injuries reported. | AFP Photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – At least 530 passengers bound for international destinations were stranded at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) as of Monday, October 24, officials reported.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said they recorded around 530 international passengers whose flights have been canceled after Korean Air flight KE631 overshot at MCIA’s runway late Sunday evening, October 23.
These passengers have been transferred to hotels, with their respective airlines shouldering the expenses of their accommodations, said DOT.
In the meantime, the tourism bureau assured that they continue to coordinate with airport authorities at MCIA.
DOT’s counterpart in Central Visayas (DOT-7) said the passengers on board Korean Air flight KE631 included 112 foreign nationals, 32 balikbayans, and 18 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
“The DOT has been assured by Korean Air officials that all tourists involved in the incident have been accounted for and are currently billeted at a nearby hotel,” they added.
Following flight KE631’s crash landing at the country’s second busiest airport, airport officials decided to temporarily shut down operations. This meant all flights, in and out of Mactan airport, have either been diverted to nearby airports or canceled.
At 11:11 p.m. on Sunday, October 23, Korean Air flight KE631 overran the runway at MCIA apparently due to bad weather.
The Airbus 330 jet, carrying 173 people on board, attempted to land at Mactan airport twice before crash landing on its runway, according to flight data monitoring app Flightradar24.
Investigations are still ongoing to determine the real cause behind the incident.
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/dcb
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