Three hundred people, mostly Indians, had a miraculous escape on Wednesday, when an Emirates flight from Thiruvananthapuram to Dubai crash-landed and exploded on the runway here, shutting down one of the world’s busiest airports.
Emirates confirmed that the flight EK521, with 282 passengers and 18 crew members on board, was involved in an accident at the Dubai International Airport. The airline said there were 226 Indians aboard the Boeing 777-300. “We can confirm that there are no fatalities among our passengers and crew. All passengers and crew are safe,” the airline said in statement.
However, a firefighter died while saving the lives of others, said the General Civil Aviation Authority. Around 10 passengers were treated for smoke inhalation and burns at hospital. Only one person was admitted for long-term treatment, the local media said.
ADVERTISEMENT
The flight departed at 10.19 a.m. from the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport. Among the 282 passengers were seven infants, Thiruvananthapuram Airport Director George Tharakkan said. The flight had two Indian crew members, he said.
There were 74 foreigners on board, including 24 from the U.K., 11 from the UAE and six each from the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. There was no official word on the cause, but reports said the landing gear collapsed and the plane slid and exploded
I was horrified, says eyewitness
Sai Bhaskar, a passenger on the Emirates flight that crash-landed and exploded on the runway of the Dubai International Airport on Wednesday, said most of those travelling on the plane were from Kerala.
There was no problem during the flight, Mr. Bhaskar said. “There was no announcement about any snag. We felt as if the flight first landed, went up again and hit the ground. When smoke engulfed the flight, we realised there was something amiss and felt there was some danger,” he said.
“It was difficult to open the emergency exit first,” Mr. Bhaskar said. Some passengers were injured while trying to jump through the emergency exit, he added.
Also read: >Near-miss over Guwahati leaves passengers shaken
'Inhaled smoke'
“People inhaled smoke. Those who left the plane early might not have done so. But those who went out later inhaled smoke,” another passenger said.
Yet another passenger said the jet’s “engine blew up” as soon as the plane crash-landed.
Shaji, one of the passengers, said he and his three children and wife had a narrow escape. When the flight was about to land, they heard a sound, and there was smoke all over. Immediately, all the emergency exits were opened, and everyone was asked to move quickly to the exit doors, he said. “One by one, all of us escaped. My wife and I suffered minor injuries,” he said.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes. I was horrified,” Sarah-Louise Sherwood, an eyewitness, told the BBC.
“The slides came out but they were blowing all over the place. People managed to escape before there was a big explosion, with flames everywhere. We had taxied and stopped right next to where it was happening and people in my plane were just saying ‘oh my god’ and ‘get us off this plane’,” she said.
No cause has so far been established for the crash, but images shared on social media suggest a belly-landing, which occurs when an aircraft lands without its landing gear fully extended.
Dedicated telephone lines have been activated for family members: UAE-8002111, the U.K.-00442034508853 and the U.S.-0018113502081.
The Dubai airport authorities have suspended all operations.
Twenty-one flights, including two to India, were cancelled. Some inbound flights were diverted to other regional airports. “Emergency response teams at the Dubai airport have fully extinguished the fire on the Emirates plane. All passengers and crew were safely evacuated,” the Dubai media office tweeted after the accident.