At least 124 people have been confirmed dead after a Jeju Air flight crashed while attempting to land at Muan International Airport early Sunday morning.
The Boeing 737-800, carrying 181 passengers and six crew members, was en route from Bangkok, Thailand, when it veered off the runway and collided with a wall before bursting into flames.
The crash, which occurred just after 9:00am local time (00:00 GMT), was the deadliest airplane disaster on South Korean soil. Until now, the worst air disaster in the country wasThe cousin of a Thai passenger, 49-year-old Jongluk Doungmanee, who flew on the fatal Jeju Air plane says she is “saddened” and “shocked”.
Pornphichaya chalermsin, from Nong Wua So District, Udon Thani, told the BBC that her cousin Jongluk was residing in South Korea for five years with her two children, aged 7 and 15. She worked in agriculture with her Korean husband, whom she married three years ago.
In an interview with BBC Thai, she said she had “only ever seen such news from other countries and never thought it would involve Thai people”, adding that “watching the video footage made me feel even more distressed.
“I was shocked, I had goosebumps. I couldn’t believe it… when the news said one of the victims was from Udon Thani, I was even more surprised.”
Before her flight on Jeju Air Flight 7C2216, Joungluk was in Thailand visiting her family and traveling in Chiang Mai with her husband. Her husband returned to South Korea before she departed.
