South Korea’s Muan turns into mass funeral site after deadly plane crash
Al Jazeera
A sea of people wearing black, waiting for the remains of their loved ones, throng Muan’s airport, two days after crash.
Muan, South Korea — Muan International Airport looks like any other airport during the holidays. Its car park is filled with hundreds of cars while the doors to the departure and arrival gates are bustling with activity.
Yet it’s nothing like any other airport, and there’s no holiday spirit on show. It’s been two days since the airport paused all of its operations after a deadly passenger plane crash on Sunday left only two survivors out of a total of 181 passengers and crew. Jeju Air Flight 2216 from Thailand to South Korea crashed into a concrete barrier and was immediately engulfed in a fireball after an emergency belly landing on the Muan airport runway.
Inside the airport, in the country’s South Jeolla province, is a sea of people wearing black, resembling a South Korean funeral. Families and friends huddle around each other, amid tears and wails of sorrow.
They are waiting to receive the remains of their loved ones, to be united with them one last time.
Ki Hwe-man, 37, travelled for more than five hours from the northern city of Paju after hearing that his uncle was one of the victims of the plane crash. He remembers his late uncle as a man of faith and as a friend.
