LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A UPS cargo plane crashed and exploded in a massive fireball Tuesday as it took off from the company’s global aviation hub in Louisville, Kentucky, killing at least seven people and injuring 11 others, authorities said.
The plane crashed around 5:15 p.m. while departing for Honolulu from UPS Worldport at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport.
A video clip showed flames on the plane’s left wing and a trail of smoke. The plane then rose slightly off the ground before crashing and exploding in a huge fireball. The video also revealed parts of the torn roof of the building next to the end of the runway.
Officials said the death toll had risen to at least seven on Tuesday evening, and that four of the dead were not on board the plane.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said that among the 11 injured, some of them were “very seriously” injured.
He added: “Everyone who saw the photos and video knows how violent this incident was.”
Bashir said that he did not know the status of the three crew members on board the plane, which was a McDonnell Douglas MD-11 manufactured in 1991.
UPS’s largest package processing facility is in Louisville, and the company announced Tuesday night that it had halted package sorting at the center and did not say when it would resume operations. The center employs thousands of workers, has 300 daily flights and sorts more than 400,000 packages per hour.
“We all know someone who works at UPS,” Louisville Metro Councilwoman Betsy Rohe said. “And they’re all texting their friends and family, trying to make sure everyone’s safe. And unfortunately, some of those texts will probably go unanswered.”
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg says the National Transportation Safety Board is taking over the investigation and sending 28 people.
Meanwhile, the airport was closed and was not expected to resume operations until Wednesday morning.
“We don’t know how long it will take to make this scene safe,” Louisville Police Chief Paul Humphrey said.
The governor said the Kentucky Petroleum Recycling Company appears to have been “very directly affected,” as was a nearby auto parts operation.
Eric Richardson stood outside a police training academy where people gathered looking for information about missing loved ones Tuesday night, hoping to find out what happened to his girlfriend. He told the AP that she was at a metal recycling company near the explosion and was not answering her phone. The live location of her phone indicates she is still there.
Richardson’s friend, Bobby Whelan, was standing in front of her in line, but he left minutes before the explosion. He said he was about a quarter mile down the road when he heard the sound of a bomb exploding.
“We don’t even want to think about anything but the best,” Whelan said. “All our friends were there.”
A video captured by Lirim Rodriguez shows several huge balls of flame exploding in the sky in succession, followed by large billowing clouds of black smoke.
Tom Brooks Jr., who runs a metal recycling business on the street, said the unbelievable scale of the incident “shook the whole place.”
“This was huge. I mean it literally looked like a war zone,” he said.
Destin Mitchell said she was working as a hostess at an outback restaurant, about a 15-minute drive from the scene, when she heard a loud bang. There were about 20 people in the restaurant.
“The mood in the restaurant was very tense,” Mitchell said. “Everyone is really worried. People who sat down to eat got up and left in less than 30 minutes and packed their food because they wanted to hurry and get home.”
Based on the videos, it appears the plane was struggling to gain altitude with flames on its left side around one of its engines, said Pablo Rojas, an aviation lawyer. Given the large amount of fuel it was carrying, once a fire broke out in that area, it would only be a matter of time before an explosion occurred or the fire grew rapidly.
He added: “In fact, the plane itself behaves like a bomb because of the amount of fuel.”
Louisville Airport is just a 10-minute drive from downtown, which is located on the Ohio River on the Indiana border. There are residential areas, a water park and museums in the area.
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Golden reported from Seattle. AP reporters Ed White in Detroit, John Rabe in Cross Lanes, West Virginia, and Adrian Saenz in Memphis, Tennessee, contributed to this report.