CNN
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A plane crash in southwestern South Korea has killed at least 28 people, the local fire department told CNN.

South Jeolla Provincial Fire Department Headquarters said the number was expected to rise as recovery efforts continued.

Jeju Air Flight 7C 2216 from Bangkok was carrying 175 passengers and six crew members when it crashed at the airport in Muan county shortly after 9 a.m. local time on Sunday (7 p.m. ET Saturday).

According to the fire department, emergency crews said they rescued two people from the plane.

Rescue workers at Muan International Airport are focused on reaching people in the tail area of ​​the plane, which was listed on flight tracking site FlightAware as a Boeing 737-800.

A fire official who spoke to CNN said the plane was “almost completely destroyed” by fire.

According to the South Korean Land Ministry, two Thai nationals were among the passengers.

Images of the crash released by Yonhap News Agency showed that only the tail section of the plane was intact and surrounded by flames.

According to the fire department, the accident was due to a malfunction of the chassis.

This is a developing story and will be updated.