In this Aug. 6, 2014, file photo, former governor of Pernambuco state and Brazilian Socialist Party presidential candidate Eduardo Campos campaigns in Brasilia, Brazil.SAO PAULO – Brazilian presidential candidate Eduardo Campos died Wednesday when the small plane that was carrying him and several campaign officials plunged into a residential neighborhood in the port city of Santos, a City Hall official there said.
All seven people aboard the plane, including a campaign photographer and cameraman, a press advisor, as well as two pilots, died in the crash, City Hall press officer Patricia Fagueiro told The Associated Press.
In a statement on her official blog, Rousseff declared three days of official mourning in honor of Campos and said she would suspend her campaign during that time. “All of Brazil is in mourning,” the statement said. “We have lost a great Brazilian.”
It was not immediately clear whether anyone on the ground was injured in the crash, which took place around 10 a.m. local time (0800 EDT). The plane reportedly took off from Rio de Janeiro and was headed to the city of Guaruja.
The Brazilian Air Force reported the plane was a Cessna 560XL. Aeronautical authorities said the craft was attempting to land in bad weather.