Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crash: Witnesses describe moment plane came down in Ukraine
Residents have described opening their doors and seeing debris and bodies fall from the sky
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Witness at the site where the Malaysian flight MH17 crashed near the village of Grabovo, in eastern Ukraine, have described the moments after the jet was downed, killing all 298 passengers on board.
Irina Tipunova's told Reuters a body fell through the rickety roof of her home in the village just after the Boeing 777-200 was reportedly shot down.
The 65-year-old said: "There was a howling noise and everything started to rattle. Then objects started falling out of the sky.
"Then I heard a roar and she landed in the kitchen, the roof was broken." Still visibly shaken by her experience, Ms Tipunova added: "The body's still here because they told me to wait for experts to come and get it."
She described seeing chunks of metal, pieces of luggage and other debris falling as the plane crashed into a field of sunflowers about one km (1000 yards) from her home.
Another resident, who refused to give her name, describing opening the door of her home and “seeing people falling”.
"I opened the door and I saw people falling. One fell in my vegetable patch," she said.
Katya, 64, told News.au she had just gone to sleep when she heard “an enormous bang like an earthquake”. Her son-in-law Alexander said flaming shards had fallen from the sky, scorching the fence around his farm.
“The grapevines have also been burnt. We were very, very lucky to have escaped unharmed," he added, pointing to landing gear and a large chuck of the plane's fuselage nearby.
Ten Britons and 189 Dutch nationals were among the passengers from nearly a dozen nations who died in the incident. The nationalities of four other passengers have not yet been determined.
The UN Security Council has called for "a full, thorough and independent international investigation" into the downing of the plane.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments