12 dead, 16 injured in Taiwan air crash

A TransAsia Airways airplane carrying 58 people crashed into a river in northern Taiwan on Wednesday after hitting an elevated bridge, leaving 12 dead, 16 injured and 30 unaccounted for, the Taipei-based Central News Agency reported.
Two other people in a taxi were also injured as they were hit by the airplane, according to the Taipei City government.
The ATR-72 plane, carrying 53 passengers and five crew members took off from Taipei Songshan Airport at 10:52 a.m. (0252 GMT) en route to the Kinmen Islands, but crashed 10 minutes late, the report said. Among the passengers on board were two children and about 31 Chinese tourists.
The military said it has 165 soldiers and officers on standby near the location where the plane crashed to help with the rescue work. It also has eight inflatable boats and other military vehicles ready to provide assistance, the report said.
The ill-fated plane was a newer version of the TransAsia Airways ATR-72 aircraft that crashed after an aborted landing in outlying Penghu County in July 2014, leaving 49 people dead. Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration said the plane was less than a year old and completed its latest safety checks on Jan. 26. The agency did not offer any information on what may have caused the crash.