Philippine interior secretary missing in plane crash

MANILA: A light plane carrying Philippine Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo crashed into the sea Saturday while attempting an emergency landing. At least one person was rescued but Robredo and the two pilots were missing, officials said.
Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas II told DZBB radio that the Cessna 172 plane took off from central Cebu city and was heading to Robredo’s hometown of Naga city in Camarines Sur province when the pilot informed the Masbate airport that it would make an emergency landing. The plane was unable to reach the airport and crashed into the sea.
He said an aide of Robredo was able to jump out and was rescued.
Robredo is one of the members of the Cabinet closest to President Benigno Aquino III and helped his election campaign in 2010.
The interior secretary is in charge of the Philippine National Police and local government units.
Witnesses saw the plane plunging into the water, about 500 meters (1,640 feet) from the runway. Robredo’s police escort was rescued by fishermen and brought to a nearby hospital with minor injuries.
“They were not able to make it to the airport,” Col. Generoso Bolina, an army spokesman told reporters, saying they immediately sent search and rescue teams but could not find any wreckage.
A report by the news site Philippine Daily Inquirer said the survivor, identified as Jun Abrazado, told police that Robredo was not able to get out of the aircraft.
Local television said Robredo was on the phone with his wife hours before the plane went down, saying the propeller had stopped working.
Interior Undersecretary Rico Puno said he and Robredo attended a gathering of civilian volunteers assisting in police work in Cebu. After the event, the secretary took the plane for Naga, he said.
“Later, we got a call from the aide that their plane had developed engine trouble and they needed help,” Puno said.
The coast guard said the plane crashed about 1.8 kilometers (1.2 miles) from the shore close to Masbate airport.
Rescue workers were searching the waters off Masbate city, about 380 kilometers (235 miles) southwest of Manila, for Robredo and the two pilots but had to halt the underwater search because of darkness, Puno said.