The tail of the burnt fuselage of a small plane that crashed, rests near trees in Guanacaste, Corozalito, Costa Rica on December 31, 2017. Ezequiel Becerra / AFP
The tail of the burnt fuselage of a small plane that crashed, rests near trees in Guanacaste, Corozalito, Costa Rica on December 31, 2017. Ezequiel Becerra / AFP

Nine members of two families killed in Costa Rican plane crash



Nine people from two US families were killed when a Costa Rican plane crashed into woodland minutes after take-off, officials and relatives confirmed.

Bruce and Irene Steinberg and their three sons were killed in the crash in the mountainous area off the Punta Islita beach town in the province of Guanacaste, about 230 kilometres west of the capital of San Jose.

Another family, doctors Mitchell and Leslie Weiss and their two children, were also killed, along with their holiday guide and the two aircrew.

The flight was part of a special charter service for 20 people, relying on two planes, arranged by California-based hiking and biking travel company Backroads.

The first plane, carrying 10 passengers, arrived safely in San Jose at 11.40am on Sunday. The second, with 10 passengers and two pilots, departed 20 minutes later.

"Regrettably this plane crashed a few minutes after taking off," said local aviation company Nature Air.

The Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft crashed minutes after take-off, but officials had not determined the cause of the crash. The plane had passed a safety inspection about a month ago and was authorised to fly.

Although strong winds in the morning had forced the pilots to alter their itinerary, they had flown safely to Punto Islita to pick up passengers headed to San Jose.

Read more: Six killed in a New Year's Eve seaplane crash in Australia

A video of the crash site obtained from Costa Rica's Security Ministry shows orange flames consuming a pile of blackened ruins, with plane parts scattered in an area thick with trees.

Laura Chinchilla, who was president of Costa Rica from 2010 to 2014, said on Twitter that her cousin, one of the pilots, had died in the accident.

"There are no people alive," Costa Rica's security minister Gustavo Mata said, adding that autopsies would be needed to confirm the total number and identities of victims because their remains were badly burned.

Punta Islita, on Costa Rica's Pacific Coast, is popular among North American and European tourists for its pristine beaches and lush landscape.

If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters

The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.

 Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.

A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.

The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.

The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.

Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.

Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment

But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.

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Name: Almnssa
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Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
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Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.

Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en

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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.

A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.

Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.

A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.

On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.

The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.

Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.

The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later. 

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