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Then and now: The site of the Alps plane crash

Ben McPartland
Ben McPartland - [email protected]
Then and now: The site of the Alps plane crash
Work has almost been done to clear the Alps mountainside of the plane wreckage. Photos: Ministry of Interior

These pictures show how three weeks after a Germanwings plane crashed in the French Alps, the mountainside that was once strewn with wreckage and body parts has almost been cleared by investigators.

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On the afternoon of March 24th the first images were broadcast of the shocking scene of devastation on the slopes of the French Alps where a Germanwings passenger plane had crashed just hours before.

In the words of one of the first police rescuers on the scene the plane had been "pulverized" and "there was nothing much left".

Rescuers spoke of no piece of wreckage being bigger than a car. More images released later showed the debris strewn across the steep mountain slopes.

Photo: Ministry of Interior

Since then a painstaking and harrowing mission has been underway to remove, first the body parts, and then the debris.

Images released by France's Ministry of Interior this week showed the site of the crash now is almost clear of debris and is unrecognizable from the scene of devastation after the crash.

All  that can be seen are investigators dressed in white suits combing the ground for minute pieces of wreckage.

Photo: Ministry of Interior

With all the body parts having already been removed, a team of experts have been combing the slopes to remove every piece of wreckage that is then taken away to be examined as part of the investigation into the cause of the crash.

CLICK HERE for a slide show of pictures of the site clearance

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