Plane Impacted Mangrove Swamp Southeast Of Airport

"No." That was the answer given Monday by a Cameroonian official, when asked whether any of the 114 passengers onboard a Kenya Airways 737 that crashed Saturday had survived the accident.

"I was there. I saw none," added Luc Ndjudo, who spoke with reporters after returning from the accident site, located in a mangrove swamp. The total impact area is about the size of a soccer field, he said.

"We assume that a large part of the plane is underwater," Ndjodo told The Associated Press. "I only saw pieces."

As Aero-News reported, controllers at the Douala airport lost contact with the six-month-old 737-800 shortly after takeoff Saturday. The plane with 114 passengers and crew onboard was bound for Nairobi, when it crashed 12 miles southeast of Douala, the capitol of Cameroon.

Kenya Airways CEO Titus Naikuni said the flight departed Douala one hour late due to rain. The plane's crew issued a distress call within 15 minutes after takeoff, before controllers lost contact with the plane, he added.

An anonymous US Embassy official who flew over the impact site told the AP there was little sign of the wreckage from overhead. "It's not what you expect, a bunch of trees knocked down and charred. It's just a big muddy hole, like many others out there."

A representative with the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to arrive in Cameroon Tuesday. Among the many questions to be answered regarding the accident: why didn't the aircraft's emergency locator beacon transmit following the crash?

"It is very unlikely, but the device can actually be destroyed," said Capt. Paul Mwangi, head of operations for Kenya Airways. "The impact would have to be very, very severe."

FMI: www.ntsb.gov, www.kcaa.or.ke, www.kenya-airways.com