Ethiopian Airlines crash: Calls for patience as kin are reached

The Kenya Red Cross had reached 25 relatives of victims of the Ethiopian Airlines plane crash by yesterday morning.

Transport CS James Macharia called for patience as investigations on the cause of the crash continue.

Kenya, the worst hit, lost 32 people in the crash that claimed 157 lives.

A help desk has been set up at Four Points by Sheraton Hotel at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) for identification of victims' names and counseling of relatives.

Mr Macharia said Government chemist and the director of aviation safety security and regulations at Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) Captain Tom Ogenche, were set to travel to Ethiopia to join the investigation team.

"As you know, such things take time, and we ask for patience in terms of allowing experts to carry out their investigations. Since we had the highest number of casualties, we are an interested party," he said.

Affected families

Macharia held that focus would continue to be on affected families. He said some relatives of victims would travel to Ethiopia to help identify bodies.

Ethiopian Airlines Area Manager Yilma Goshu said investigations into the crash were being conducted at international standards while giving attention to consoling affected families.

“We are trying our best to ensure we comfort and counsel relatives and friends of passengers on board the flight,” said Mr Goshu.

This comes after the airline decided to ground its entire Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet, effective Sunday.

Goshu said the airline was yet to know the cause of the accident and that grounding the fleet was a safety precaution.

He said the airline would release further information as soon as it was available through its website and social media pages.