COTONOU, Benin, Dec 26, 2003 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- Rescue teams combed cold, dark waters off the West African nation of Benin on Friday in a desperate search for survivors of a plane crash the health minister said killed at least 111 people.

Eleven of those who died in Thursday's crash were dragged onto a beach from the wreckage just off Atlantic Ocean port city of Cotonou, Benin's commercial capital, Health Minister Celine Seignon Kandissounon told reporters. Most of the casualties were Lebanese headed home for Christmas holidays.

Transport Minister Ahmed Akobi said 20 people survived the accident.

With spotlights perched on the beach and flashlights in hand, divers and fishermen searched for survivors through the night, swimming through scattered pieces of luggage, clothes and gift-wrapped presents. Tractors tied chains to parts of the Boeing 727's wreckage, including an engine, in an effort to clear away the wreckage.

By dawn, the bulk of the destroyed aircraft still lay in the water, some 100 meters (yards) from the beach. About 20 Benin navy patrol boats were positioned offshore to facilitate the rescue effort.

It was unclear exactly how many people were aboard the chartered aircraft. Akobi said the plane's manifest listed 156 passengers and an unknown number of crew.

Before dawn, about 50 Lebanese nationals gathered along the shore, crowding around bodies - pulled from the water one by one - to identify friends or relatives.

"This is all too much for me to handle," said Akim Toufik.

The death toll could rise as rescue work continued. An Associated Press reporter saw at least 15 bodies and the plane's severed cockpit lay on the beach after midnight.

There was no word on what caused the tragedy. Akobi said rescue teams were searching for the aircraft's black box, but it had not been found.

The Boeing lifted off on a sunny Thursday afternoon from the airport in Cotonou, and troubles began right away, said Jerome Dandjinou, a senior airport security official.

"The back of the plane hit a building at the end of the runway. There was a fire and an explosion was heard," Dandjinou told The Associated Press. "The plane exploded and the debris fell into the water." The Atlantic Ocean is about 500 meters (yards) from airport tarmac.

The flight originated in the Guinean capital, Conakry, and stopped in Freetown, Sierra Leone, picking up Lebanese along the way. It was bound for Beirut, Lebanese Transportation Minister Najib Mikati said.

Authorities shut down Cotonou airport for 24 hours after the crash as a security precaution, Akobi said. Lebanese Foreign Minister Jean Obeid said it closed because the plane apparently damaged part of the airport's guidance system.

On Friday, Obeid arrived in Cotonou on a flight from Beirut that was given special permission to land despite the airport's closure.

Ten Lebanese army divers headed directly to the crash scene to salvage what's left of bodies, while a 6-man Lebanese medical team was sent to Benin hospitals to help treat the wounded, Obeid told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp.

He said at least 23 wounded Lebanese survivors were expected to return home on the same plane.

Television images showed pieces of the plane lying in the surf: a shorn-off landing gear, part of a wing, the cockpit and the rear part of the fuselage, along with an engine.

Tangled wires and metal hung from the ripped-open fuselage. One man sat in the sand, blood running down his bare chest. Another injured man held his head.

A Lebanese survivor, Nabil Hashem, told Al Manar television in Beirut that he was in the back of the plane and was able to swim to safety.

"Those in the front were the most hurt," Hashem said. "May God's mercy fall on them. It was a horrible scene."

Thousands of Lebanese immigrants work in West African countries. Most of the passengers on Thursday's flight were believed to be returning home for the Christmas holidays.