The Democratic Republic of Congo Mines Minister Louis Watum Kabamba and his delegation survived a plane crash on Monday, November 17.
Kabamba and his group were en route to Kalando following a deadly artisanal mine collapse that killed more than 30 people at the weekend.
The Angolan-operated Embraer ERJ-145 carrying the delegation veered off the runway during landing at 11am local time and burst into flames.
The aircraft, registered 9S-AJB and flown under Air Katanga for a chartered emergency mission, had departed Lubumbashi for Kolwezi in Lualaba Province.
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It is not yet clear how many people were onboard the ill-fated jet as the government did not reveal the numbers in two different statements.
According to preliminary accounts and video shared by some of the survivors on social media, the jet had a heavy landing seemingly after suffering technical glitches, skidded off the runway, lost its main landing gear and ignited shortly afterwards.
Video widely circulated on social media shows passengers scrambling out of the cabin as fire consumed the rear fuselage, eventually engulfing the aircraft.
The jet was completely destroyed.
Witnesses said no fire trucks arrived for several minutes, despite Kolwezi Airport being required to maintain at least three rescue-and-firefighting vehicles with a combined capacity of 28,000 litres.
Airport sources and aviation staff have long raised concerns about inadequate equipment and response times at the provincial airport, which receives aircraft as large as the Airbus A330.
The Ministry of Mines later issued a formal statement confirming that Minister Kabamba and all members of his delegation escaped unhurt.
"The team was travelling to Kalando following the November 15 collapse at an artisanal mining site near the village of Mulondo, where several dozen miners were killed," the government said.
"The minister was expected to convey government condolences, assess damage and coordinate emergency assistance with provincial authorities."
Aviation experts note that under ICAO regulations for Category 8 aerodromes--applicable to Kolwezi--rescue teams must be able to reach any point of the runway within two to three minutes.
Airports in this category are also required to deploy three rescue-and-firefighting vehicles, adequate personnel, protective equipment, breathing apparatus, and medical kits, all maintained in fully operational condition.
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An investigation into the cause of the crash is expected to focus on possible technical failure, airport conditions during landing and the apparent delay in firefighting response.
