Fire officials said 14
people were taken to Sunrise hospital to be treated for minor injuries,
including cuts and bruises, most a result of sliding down the inflatable chutes
to escape.
The British Airways jet has
caught fire at Las Vegas airport, sending smoke billowing into the air, after
suffering what the pilot described as a “catastrophic failure” of the left
engine.
British Airways fire: 'We
saw the smoke. The smell was bitter. It was time to panic'
The plane – a Boeing 777
heading from the US city’s McCarran airport to London Gatwick – could be seen
with flames around its fuselage.
All 157 passengers and 13
crew – including three pilots – on board were evacuated, and the fire was
swiftly put out by around 50 firefighters. An airport spokeswoman told
reporters: “All passengers were evacuated quickly and safely and taken by bus
to the terminal.
“We cannot express enough
gratitude to the emergency response crews, as well as the British Airways
crew.”
The National Transportation
Safety Board was investigating the incident, she added.
The plane’s take-off had
been aborted shortly before the fire broke out. The Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) said the Boeing’s 777 left engine – manufactured by
General Electric – burst into flames.
Dramatic images of flight
BA2276 were shared on social media by members of the public at the airport,
which is five miles south of downtown Las Vegas.
Guardian reporter Jacob
Steinberg was on the plane and tweeted about the evacuation: “Just evacuated on
a British Airways flight at Las Vegas airport after an engine caught fire.
Don’t think anyone hurt.
“Was asleep as the plane
took off. Came to a crashing halt. Smell of smoke. Initially told to stay
seated, then shout of evacuate.
“Could smell and see smoke
but was on other side of plane. One person said fire melted a couple of
windows.
“They opened the back door
and slide went down and smoke started coming in plane, followed by mad dash to
front. A lot of panic.”
The pilot came to talk to the evacuated passengers in the airport building, and was met by applause. The pilot told them the fire had been the result of a “catastrophic failure of the engine”.
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