New Delhi, August 7: Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday said it was a "tragic day" for Kerala after an Air India Express flight from Dubai skidded off the runway at Kozhikode airport and broke up into two, and hoped that rescue efforts will succeed in saving all the passengers.

"Tragic day for Kerala. First the deaths in Munnar & now this: I hear both pilots have died. Hope rescue efforts will succeed in saving all the passengers," the MP from Thiruvananthapuram tweeted soon after the news of the accident broke. Also Read | Air India Express Plane Crash Helpline Numbers: Kozhikode Collector, Indian Consulate in Dubai Issue Helplines For Information on Passengers of IX-1344 Dubai-Kozhikode Flight.

Shashi Tharoor's Tweet

The Air India Express flight with 191 passengers and crew skidded off the tabletop runway and fell into a 50-foot deep valley breaking up into two parts on Friday evening, police sources said. At least two people were killed in the accident. Also Read | Air India Express Plane Crash | PM Narendra Modi Says 'Pained by The Plane Accident': Live News Breaking And Coronavirus Updates on August 7, 2020.

Many people have been rushed to nearby hospitals and the condition of some of them is said to be serious.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)