Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lilongwe (Agenzia Fides) - "I regret to inform you that the rescue teams have found the remains of the plane in the forest. There are no survivors. All people on board died on impact," said the President of Malawi, Lazarus Chakwera, confirming the death of his deputy, Saulos Klaus Chilima on live television. The plane carrying the Vice President lost radar contact yesterday, June 10, at around 9am local time as it prepared to land in Mazuzu, northern Malawi. Air traffic controllers had advised the pilot to return to the capital Lilongwe, but traces of the aircraft were lost and later found crashed in a forest near Mazuzu.
Due to the dense vegetation, rescue workers had great difficulty finding the wreckage. The Malawi government had asked several states for help in the search. In addition to the Vice President, nine other people were on board the plane, including the former President's wife, Bakili Muluzi. When the news of Chilima's death broke, messages of condolence from some Malawian priests, who remembered him as a devout Catholic, also appeared on social media. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 11/6/2024)
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