Ondo State Commissioner for Environment, Hon. Tob Loko, has described Monday’s aircraft crash at Igbokoda in Ilaje Local Government Area of the state as a national tragedy.
The commissioner spoke in an interview with Orange FM’s Director of News and Current Affairs, Adebimpe Akindele, on the ongoing search and recovery efforts at the crash site.
Hon. Loko said all relevant state government agencies and parastatals had been deployed to the site on the directive of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, who also visited the area to assess the situation and ensure a thorough search and recovery operation.
He explained that the crash site was farther from Igbokoda than initially believed, located about 500 metres away in a swampy area.
According to him, divers were already working at the site, but the use of small speedboats had proved inadequate for the recovery operation.
He said the state government had therefore deployed swamp buggies from the Ministry of Environment to the area to assist in clearing the swamp and pulling out parts of the wreckage.
The commissioner said the aircraft appeared to have impacted the swamp with great force, resulting in extensive damage and scattering parts of the wreckage across the area.
He added that significant clearing was being carried out to create enough space for larger-capacity swamp buggies to access the site and enhance the recovery operation.
Hon. Loko disclosed that divers had located a larger section of the aircraft, although several smaller fragments remained scattered across the swamp.
He said only clothes and personal effects belonging to some of the passengers had been recovered as of Wednesday afternoon, adding that no body had yet been found.
The commissioner described the situation as pathetic, while commending the divers and other personnel involved in the recovery operation.
On reports suggesting that the aircraft might have been attacked or shattered by a bomb mid-air, Hon. Loko said such claims remained speculative, stressing that no substantial evidence had been found to support them.
He said the divers were still searching for the aircraft’s black box, which could provide vital information to investigators about the circumstances surrounding the crash.
Hon. Loko assured that the search and recovery operation would continue until all possible parts of the wreckage and other relevant items were recovered.
