Dana Air Flight Inbound From Abuja To Lagos

The civil aviation authority of Nigeria has confirmed that all 153 aboard the Dana Air flight, a Boeing MD83, to Lagos were lost when the plane went down in a densely populated neighborhood near the airport. Casualties on the ground are likely, according to a spokesman from Nigeria's national emergency management agency, but the number of missing was unknown.

CBS News reports that spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency Yushau Shuaib said they were still trying to get an official manifest on the flight. Sometimes flights in Nigeria issue paper tickets and don't record all passengers via computer. Witness Praise Richard said, "I don't think there will be any survivors. It would take a miracle."

The jet did not appear to have nose-dived into a building as was initially reported, but seemed to have landed on its belly. It crashed through a furniture shop and then into residential buildings. Its nose was embedded in a three-story apartment building.

Lagos' international airport, a major West African hub saw 2.3 million passengers pass through it in 2009, according to the most recent statistics. The FAA had given Nigeria its Category 1 status in August 2010, which allows Nigerian carriers to fly directly to the U.S. Despite this, Nigeria's state-provided electricity and generators sometimes both fail at airports, blanking radar screens.

FMI: www.ncaa.gov.ng, www.danagroup.com