Kochi, August 8: Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja on Saturday announced that people who were engaged in rescue operations at Kozhikode Airport should go into self-quarantine as a precautionary measure. According to reports, two deceased passengers of the Air India Express flight, have tested positive for coronavirus. Shailaja said that Kerala Government will also be conducting the COVID-19 tests of everyone who were involved in humanitarian assistance at the accident site. "All those who were involved in rescue operations at Kozhikode Airport should go into self-quarantine. State Government to conduct coronavirus tests of all", KK Shailaja said.

People who have been asked to go into self-quarantine are the ones who were engaged in the rescue operations at the Kozhikode airport after Air India Express flight skidded off the runway on Friday. The flight that had a crash-landing had returned from Dubai under the Vande Bharat mission. There were 190 people onboard of which 18 people have died so far, including two pilots. Reports inform that the plane plunged 35 feet into the valley below, as it landed on its second attempt amid heavy rain in the southern state. Air India Express Plane Crash Update: 18 Dead Including 2 Pilots.

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The Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR) has been recovered from the aircraft while the floorboard is being cut to retrieve Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) official said.

In the wake of the incident, investigating officials from Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), top officials of Air India and Air India Express have reached Kozhikode from New Delhi on Saturday. The officials will probe the cause of accident at the Kozhikode airport where an Air India Express plane skidded and fell into a valley killing 18 passengers, including the two pilots and injuring many others on Friday evening.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 08, 2020 11:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).