Twelve tourists and two crew members died this Saturday afternoon, the 16th, after the crash of a small plane in Barcelos, in the interior of Amazonas. The municipality is one of the main international destinations for sport and recreational fishing in the country, sought after by Brazilian and foreign visitors, and the current season had just started.
The flight was intended to take tourists to fish in the Upper Rio Negro. Intense rain was hitting the region at the time of the accident, which had motivated two aircraft to abandon their landing and return to Manaus shortly before. Local authorities guarantee that the airport is safe for smaller flights, but the reasons for the accident are under investigation.
The municipality is located about 400 kilometers from Manaus, to the north of the state, in the Alto Rio Negro. The ecotourism destination is sought after for accumulating records of large peacock bass (which can exceed one meter in length) and for ornamental fish in general. Barcelos has around 700 islands and is the second largest municipality in the country. Local tour operators even offer boat-hotel services, with day-long itineraries.
The high season for sport fishing has just begun, and runs annually from September to March. At the beginning of this month, the state government announced its expectation of attracting more than 30 thousand tourists, from Brazil and abroad, for sport fishing in the current season. The State Tourism Company (Amazonastur) estimates that Barcelos concentrates almost half of the State’s fishing tourism and that the current season will generate R$500 million, directly and indirectly.
Plane crash will be investigated
The plane had authorization from the National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) to operate as an air taxi and the airworthiness situation was considered normal. In a statement, the agency said it regretted the accident.
In a statement, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) reported that investigators from the Aeronautical Accident Investigation and Prevention Center (Cenipa) were called to assess the crash of the aircraft registered PT-SOG. It was an Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirante model, with capacity to carry up to 18 passengers. The Civil Police will also investigate the case.
The governor of Amazonas, Wilson Lima (União Brasil), lamented the accident on social media. “Our teams have been working, from the outset, to provide the necessary support. To family and friends, my solidarity and prayers,” he wrote on social media.
The post Barcelos, where plane crashed in AM, is an international fishing destination appeared first in Jornal de Brasília.
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