New reports have come in that show that all ninety passengers that were on board the Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-800 jet that crashed into the Mediterranean are believed to have died. The jet, which was bound for Addis Ababa, crashed into the sea just shortly after taking off from Beirut airport. Some witnesses said that they saw a ball of fire.

Police have already ruled out terrorism and said that it was probably weather related. During the time there was heavy rain and lightning in the area. The Ethiopian Airlines chief executive, Girma Wake, said that there was no word on any survivors. He went on to say that he has had contact with the Lebanese authorities, and they have not yet confirmed any living passengers. Four bodies have been recovered and wreckage has been uncovered in the sea near the crash site two miles off the coast, he added. Twenty-one bodies had been recovered by Monday afternoon.

Ghazi Aridi, the Lebanon transport minister, said that the passengers included 54 Lebanese, 22 Ethiopians, one Iraqi, one Syrian, one Canadian, one Russian, a French woman and two Britons. The wife of the French ambassador to Lebanon was on the plane, according to an embassy official.

The plane took off from Beirut at 2:30am local time. Helicopters and naval ships are still continuing to search the waters for possible survivors, as well as debris from the wreckage. A statement on the Ethiopian Airlines website said that a team is already working on gathering all pertinent information. An investigation team has been dispatched to the scene and will release further information as more details are recovered.