ABUJA, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- A passenger plane was partially damaged Tuesday after overshooting the runway in Nigeria's southern city of Port Harcourt, but all the passengers were safe, a civil aviation spokesperson said.

The plane, which had 49 people onboard at the time of the incident, was operated by local airline Dana Air, Henrietta Yakubu, spokesperson of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, said.

Yakubu said the incident was suspected to have been caused by a heavy rain accompanied by strong wind and storm.

The plane flew in from Nigerian capital Abuja. All the passengers were safely evacuated.

The runway was temporarily shut but reopened after inspection.

On June 3, 2012, a Dana Air plane crashed in a residential area in former capital Lagos, killing the 153 people on board and 40 others inside a two-story building hit by the aircraft