A UPS plane caught fire and exploded as it took off Tuesday evening from Louisville’s airport, killing at least four people and injuring at least 11 more.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said UPS Flight 2976 from the Louisville Muhammad Ali International to Honolulu had a “catastrophic crash” around 5:15 p.m. Two businesses just south of the airport, Kentucky Petroleum Recycling and Grade A Auto Parts, were impacted by the plane and its debris. Grade A Auto Parts has accounted for all its employees except for two, though there may have been many other customers inside at the time.
“It may be some time until we can account for everyone,” Beshear said.
UofL Health said four of its area hospital treated 10 patients Tuesday, all but two of which are expected to survive. Those two are in critical condition in the Burn Unit at UofL Hospital downtown.
Video, which you can watch above, shows the plane attempting to take off southbound from the airport with a fire burning off the left wing. Shortly thereafter, it explodes. Beshear said the plane was carrying 38,000 gallons of fuel, and the impact to several of the businesses in the path could create an environmental issue.
“If there is a shelter-in-place, please follow it,” he said.
As of 9 p.m. that shelter-in-place remains in place for everything within 1 mile of the airport. Earlier in the day, the radius extended between Outer Loop and the Ohio River, covering a large portion of the city. A separate shelter-in-place is active in Jeffersonville, Indiana, from 10th Street to the Ohio River and east along the river to the Port of Indiana.
Jefferson County Public Schools canceled school for Wednesday “due to the necessary shelter-in-place order.” All extracurricular activities and athletics are also canceled.
Fire Chief Brian O’Neill said every building in the area is being searched by emergency responders, looking for survivors trapped in the rubble.
“This will be an ongoing active scene for the next several days,” LMPD Chief Paul Humphrey said. “We don’t know how long it’s going to take to render that scene safe.
Louisville is home to UPS’ largest package handling facility, a hub that employs thousands of workers, has 300 daily flights and sorts more than 400,000 packages an hour. A UPS spokesperson said operations at Worldport were halted Tuesday night, and Next Day Air sort is canceled. Employees should not report to work Tuesday night.
“We are terribly saddened by the accident tonight in Louisville,” spokesperson Jim Mayer said in a written statement. “Our heartfelt thoughts are with everyone involved. UPS is committed to the safety of our employees, our customers and the communities we serve. This is particularly true in Louisville, home to our airline and thousands of UPSers.”
The Federal Aviation Administration said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation and provide all updates, and UPS said it’s already working with both agencies on the ground.
“We are engaged with the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation of the accident and are staying in close contact with the Federal Aviation Administration.” Mayer said. “We will work tirelessly with state and local authorities on response efforts.”
Louisville Metro Police said its training academy at 2911 Taylor Blvd. will be used for “victim reunification.” Chaplains, the police Victim Services Unit and the American Red Cross will be there.
Airport officials said all departing flights Tuesday night were canceled, and anyone with flights Wednesday should contact their airlines for updated status.
TARC said just after 7 p.m. Monday that all TARC services would be suspended for the rest of the evening. TARC3, a spokesperson said, is working with current passengers with destinations outside the shelter-in-place, all evening pickups for TARC3 have also been suspended.
In a statement on social media, SDF said “all arriving and departing flights at SDF are temporarily suspended and the airfield is closed. Passengers should closely monitor their flight status via their airline’s website or mobile app.”
In a news release around 6:30 p.m., airport officials said screening at the TSA security checkpoint is temporarily suspended.
Airport officials will join Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg for a news conference at 9 p.m. at the Louisville Regional Airport Authority Administration building. That news conference will be streamed live here.
The plane crash is impacting some traffic in Louisville, according to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.
The agency said the Interstate 65 North and South on- and off-ramps to and from Fern Valley Road are closed by law enforcement. The Outer Loop is closed from Grade Lane to the Outer Loop/I-65 interchange. There are no impacts to the mainline I-65 or Interstate 264 (Watterson Expressway).
By Agencies
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