A young aid worker from Preston is the latest British victim to be named as one of those killed in the Ethiopia plane crash.

Sam Pegram was working for the Norwegian Refugee Council and had just turned 25 years old.

His mother Deborah told the Lancashire Evening Post: "Sam was so looking forward to going to Nairobi. He loved the work he was doing.

"We can't believe this has happened.

"We're totally devastated."


Mr Pegram's former school, the Penwortham Priory Academy, said he would be remembered with "great fondness".

Other Britons already confirmed to have been on board the jet include a passionate "ocean protectionist", an environmental agent, and a former probation worker are among the dead after a plane crash in Ethiopia.

A total of nine Britons are known to have been among the 157 dead after an Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed minutes after take-off.

Joanna Toole, who worked for the UN, was the first British victim to be named. Her father Adrian told Sky News: "It's dreadful she won't be able to carry on her work.

"I don't think I'll ever give up expecting her to ring."

Image: Joanna Toole, from Exmouth in Devon, worked for the UN

The 36-year-old from Exmouth in Devon was travelling to Nairobi to attend the UN Environment Assembly. On Twitter she described herself as an "ocean protectionist, lover of yoga and vegan foodie" and said she was "passionate" about the Earth.

She was researching the impact of fishing on the oceans.

Her father said she kept homing pigeons and pet rats and would travel to the remote Faroe Islands in a bid to prevent whaling.

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Adrian Toole, the father of plane crash victim Joanna Toole says 'I'll always expect her to call'

Manuel Barange, director of Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations fisheries and aquaculture department said he was "profoundly sad and lost for words" over her death.

Joseph Waithaka, 55, was originally from Kenya but lived in Hull for a decade until he moved back to his home country.

His son Ben Kuria, who lives in London, confirmed his father had died in the crash.

He said his father had worked for the probation service, adding: "He helped so many people in Hull who had found themselves on the wrong side of the law."

Image: Sarah Auffret was a polar tourism expert. Pic: AECO

Sarah Auffret was the third British victim to be named in the crash.

She was a polar tourism expert who held joint French-British citizenship and a graduate from the University of Plymouth.

Ms Auffret worked for Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO) which released a statement saying: "We are shocked and heartbroken to learn that our colleague and dear friend, Sarah Auffret, was on the Ethiopian Airlines flight ET0302 which crashed soon after take-off from Addis Ababa Sunday morning, with no survivors.

Image: A picture of the Ethiopian Airlines plane taken last November. Pic: Preston Fiedler

"Sarah was on her way to Nairobi to talk about the Clean Seas project in connection with the UN Environment Assembly this week. Words cannot describe the sorrow and despair we feel. We have lost a true friend and beloved colleague.

"Our hearts and thoughts go to Sarah's family, friends and colleagues at this time of terrible loss."

A University of Plymouth spokesman said: "Sarah was an exemplary student who fully embraced university life and took every opportunity to develop herself while she was here.

"She is remembered as someone who had a passion for learning about Europe and a strong moral compass."

Ethiopian Airlines has confirmed there were no survivors from Flight ET 302, carrying 149 passengers from 35 countries and eight crew members.

Image: An emergency centre is being set up for relatives waiting at the airport in Nairobi

Married father-of-two Michael Ryan was the sole Irish victim on the flight.

He had been based in Rome with the UN's World Food programme, which distributes rations to people in need. The UN said he was working as an engineer at the Kutupalong camp for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Irish premier Leo Varadkar praised him for his "life-changing work". He had worked on projects including assessing damage to rural roads in Nepal after landslides.

Sahra Hassan Said and Nasrudin Abdulkadir, a mother and son with dual Somali-British citizenship, were also killed.

Image: Michael Ryan is the Irish victim in the crash

Other victims included 32 Kenyans and nine Ethiopians, 18 Canadians, eight each from China, the US and Italy, seven from France, six from Egypt and five from Germany.

Slovakian MP Anton Hrnko said on Facebook that his wife and two children were among those killed.

Tamarind Group said its chief executive, Jonathan Seex, from Sweden, was on the flight.

Image: Jonathan Seex, from Sweden, was onboard the flight. Pic: Tamarind Group

The Norwegian Refugee Council reported two of its colleagues were missing after the crash, and had been expected to travel on that flight.

The Nairobi-bound flight was likely to be have been carrying people heading for a major United Nations environmental conference in the Kenyan capital.

The Boeing 737 Max 8 was on a regular scheduled flight from the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa when it came down shortly after take-off near the town of Bishoftu, some 31 miles (50km) to the southeast.

The jet left the airport at 8.38am local time before losing contact with the control tower at 8.44am.

Image: The plane had been heading to Nairobi in Kenya when it came down minutes after take-off

The airline's chief executive Tewolde GebreMariam said the pilot, who had an "excellent flying record", reported difficulties and had been cleared to turn back.

The plane "had an unstable vertical speed" after take-off, according to the flight tracking website Flightradar24.

Ethiopian Airlines said in a statement that it "deeply regrets the fatal accident" and later published a photo of the chief executive standing at the crash site.

"He expresses his profound sympathy and condolences to the families and loved ones of passengers and crew who lost their lives in this tragic accident," the company said in a social media post.

The airline, which changed its Twitter account cover photo to black following the disaster, has posted emergency numbers to call.

A message from Ambassador @AMcPhailUK on the Ethiopian Airlines crash today #ET302 pic.twitter.com/qktxtqEvII — UK in Ethiopia 🇬🇧 (@UKinEthiopia) March 10, 2019

Ethiopia's prime minister Abiy Ahmed has visited the crash site and expressed "his profound sadness at the loss of life and wishes healing to the friends and families of the bereaved," his office said.

Kenya's president Uhuru Kenyatta said: "My prayers go to all the families and associates of those on board."

Boeing said it was "deeply saddened" at the tragedy.

'At least 35 nationalities on board'

It said in a statement: "We extend our heartfelt sympathies to the families and loved ones of the passengers and crew on board and stand ready to support the Ethiopian Airlines team.

A Boeing technical team will be travelling to the crash site to provide technical assistance under the direction of the Ethiopia Accident Investigation Bureau and US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)."

The NTSB has confirmed it is to send a team to assist the investigation.