Korean, Chinese Consulates Scramble To Aid SFO Plane Crash Survivors
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- The Korean and Chinese consulates in San Francisco, along with Asiana Airlines, are assisting passengers who were on Asiana Flight 214 when it crashed at San Francisco International Airport on Saturday.
Asiana said it would provide any necessary airfare and lodging for passengers and their families. A U.S. telephone line for any inquires is available at (855) 422-7214, Asiana officials said.
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Officials from the Korean Consulate said they were issuing temporary passports for Korean travelers that lost theirs or any other travel documents in the crash. The consulate, located at 3500 Clay Street in San Francisco, was staying open 24/7, and could be reached at (415) 921 2251.
Korean officials were also collecting donations for a fund going to crash victims and their families.
Meantime, visa officers were working extra hours to assist Chinese passengers whose passports were lost or damaged and need new travel documents, Consul General Yuan Nansheng said.
He said his offices also set up an emergency command group to handle the crash's aftermath, including a 24-hour hotline for family and friends of the Chinese passengers. The hotline can be reached at (415) 852-5924 or (415) 216-8525. Inquiries can be faxed to (415) 852-5920.
According to the airline, of the 291 passengers on board, 141 were Chinese citizens, 77 were Korean, 61 were Americans, one was a Japanese citizen and 11 were other nationalities.
The two female students on the flight who died were identified as Ye Meng Yuan and Wang Lin Jia, both 16-year-old Chinese citizens.
According to the consulate, the students were part of a group from Zhejiang, a province on China's eastern coast. Nansheng visited with the surviving students at the San Jose Marriott Monday afternoon.
The group consisted of 35 Chinese high school students and chaperones who were flying into SFO on their way to attend a three-week summer session at the West Valley Christian School and Church in West Hills in Los Angeles County.
The program, which was scheduled to begin Tuesday, has been canceled, according to school officials.
Consular officers have been sent out to confirm the numbers of Chinese nationals involved in the plane crash and to visit some of those injured, Nansheng said.
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