Passengers evacuated by using emergency slides from an American Airlines flight about to take off from Denver, Colorado, on Saturday when the airplane had an issue with its landing gear.
The plane aborted takeoff when the issue occurred on American Airlines flight 3023 that was bound for Miami, ABC 7 reported on Sunday.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the flight had a “possible landing gear incident” as it departed Denver International Airport.
Video footage shows numerous people sliding out of the plane as smoke hovered in the air and emergency signals and sirens were heard in the background. Fire was also seen on the ground underneath the plane.
Several people were holding children as they exited the aircraft, and one man stumbled while holding a baby as he tried to get away from the danger as quickly as possible:
Crews with the Denver Fire Department rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire, per Fox News.
The outlet noted that “All 173 passengers and six crew members on board the Boeing 737 Max 8 were safely removed from the aircraft.”
The report said five individuals were evaluated but did not go to a hospital, but one person suffered a minor injury and was transported to receive medical help.
The aircraft was a Boeing 737 Max 8, the ABC report stated. One passenger, Mark Tsurkis, told the outlet he heard a loud boom before takeoff and knew something was wrong. Moments later, the plane slowed and travelers saw a wheel roll by, per the outlet.
Tsurkis recalled, “When the plane stopped about 30 seconds to a minute later, somebody said, ‘Smoke, fire.’ And then a lot of people, of course, started panicking.”
More still images show the passengers moving away from the plane and standing in the middle of the runway as they waited for help to arrive:
The airline said it would take the passengers to Miami on Saturday in a different plane as the one with the issue is being inspected. In addition, the FAA is investigating the incident.
The news comes after a Delta Air Lines’ flight engine burst into flames recently upon takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), according to Breitbart News.
