Workers clear 80 percent of debris from Germanwings crash, still clearing fuel

In this photo provided Monday, April 13, 2015 by the French Interior Ministry, a helicopter carries bags loaded with debris of the Germanwings passenger jet, gathered near the crash site in Seyne-les-Alpes, France. The foreign ministers of Spain, France and Germany have attended a wreath-laying ceremony Monday at Barcelona’s airport in memory of the 150 victims of the Germanwings plane crash last month in the French Alps. (Yves Malenfer/French Interior Ministry via AP) (The Associated Press)
In this photo provided Monday, April 13, 2015 by the French Interior Ministry, French emergency rescue services collect debris of the Germanwings passenger jet at the crash site near Seyne-les-Alpes, France. The foreign ministers of Spain, France and Germany have attended a wreath-laying ceremony Monday at Barcelona’s airport in memory of the 150 victims of the Germanwings plane crash last month in the French Alps. (Yves Malenfer/French Interior Ministry via AP) (The Associated Press)
In this photo provided Monday, April 13, 2015 by the French Interior Ministry, a French rescue worker collects debris of the Germanwings passenger jet at the crash site near Seyne-les-Alpes, France. The foreign ministers of Spain, France and Germany have attended a wreath-laying ceremony Monday at Barcelona’s airport in memory of the 150 victims of the Germanwings plane crash last month in the French Alps. (Yves Malenfer/French Interior Ministry via AP) (The Associated Press)

PARIS – Lufthansa says that cleanup workers have removed 80 percent of the debris from the site of a plane crash last month in the Alps that killed 150 people.

Lufthansa representative Carsten Hernig said Wednesday that cleanup teams had cleared 35 tons of waste as of Tuesday. Hernig is overseeing the operation to recover pieces of the shattered plane, operated by Lufthansa’s low-cost carrier Germanwings.

He said workers will ensure that the debris, including 4 tons of kerosene and 90 liters of lubricants, are cleared safely and without leaving environmental damage to the Alpine mountainside. Hernig spoke to reporters alongside French officials in the town of Digne-les-Bains.

Prosecutors believe that the co-pilot of Flight 9525 intentionally crashed the Barcelona-Duesseldorf flight March 24 and are trying to determine why.