104 Feared Dead at Plane Crash Site

Dense vegetation, steep slopes and strong winds kept rescuers from reaching fragments of a crashed Cebu Pacific Air DC-9 jet spotted on a Philippine mountain. There was no sign of the 104 people aboard. Helicopters were unable to land near the remote site on 7,260-foot Mt. Sumagaya because of the weather and rough incline. On the ground, searchers hampered by darkness and thick forest gave up for the night. Cebu Pacific initially quoted a mayor in the area as saying villagers had rescued 15 people. But the mayor later retracted the claim. The twin-engine plane, missing since Monday, went down 28 miles northeast of its destination, Cagayan de Oro, on the island of Mindanao. Helicopter pilots plan to guide rescuers to the site today.