At least 20 people have died and dozens more were injured after a Bolivian military cargo plane carrying banknotes crashed while landing near La Paz on Friday. The C-130 Hercules transport plane skidded off the runway at El Alto international airport, veered along an avenue, and came to rest in a field, damaging about a dozen vehicles on a highway.
Local media footage showed people rushing to collect banknotes scattered on the ground, while riot police used teargas to disperse the crowds. Authorities later set the money alight in a bonfire at the crash site. The defence ministry stated that the money had no official serial number and therefore no legal purchasing power, warning that its collection or use constitutes a crime.
Witnesses reported treacherous weather conditions at the time of the crash. Cristina Choque, a 60-year-old vendor whose car was struck by wreckage, described lightning and a heavy hailstorm. “The tyre is what fell on top of us … my daughter is injured, she has a head wound,” she said.
Colonel Rene Tambo, head of the police homicide division in El Alto, confirmed “about 20, maybe a few more” casualties. The health ministry reported at least 28 people injured. The plane, belonging to the Bolivian air force, was transporting new banknotes from the central bank to other cities.
Bolivian air force General Sergio Lora said two of the plane’s six crew members remained missing as of late Friday. The Bolivian Air Navigation and Airports authority suspended operations at El Alto airport. The defence ministry announced an investigation into the crash.
