Five people were killed and several others hospitalised on Sunday after an Amazon Prime Air cargo plane crashed in the United States. The Boeing 767-300 had overshot the runway and struck multiple vehicles while landing at Miami International Airport.
Flights had been halted immediately after the incident — with Miami Airport eventually reopening two of its four runways by Sunday evening. Officials said in a statement that more than 60 rescue units and about 200 personnel had responded to crash. Miami-Dade Fire Chief Ray Jadallah added that emergency response teams were also dealing with an active fuel leak from the aircraft.
“Earlier today, Prime Air Flight 7598 overran Miami International Airport’s diagonal runway. Two of our four runways are currently open, but we are still experiencing impacts from this incident. Passengers with flights scheduled today should check directly with their airline for flight status updates before heading to the airport,” the Miami Airport website warned.
What led to the accident?
Authorities have confirmed that the Boeing 767-300 plane barreled off a runway before striking several vehicles and bursting into flames. Jadallah said the crash had trapped the pilot and copilot in the cockpit and some occupants in cars — with the aircraft plowing across a road used by warehouse workers and other businesses that surround the airport.Visuals accessed by AP reportedly showed the plane resting on its belly beside a roadway near two semi-trucks.
Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz told local media that five people had been killed and another five hospitalised with injuries. But the cause is yet to be determined and it remains unclear whether inclement weather patterns played a role. According to the National Weather Service, thunderstorms and wind gusts up to 30 mph had been recorded in the area at the time.
The aircraft in question was a wide-body Boeing 767-300 originally built to carry passengers. According to flight-tracking site Flightradar24, it had flown for several airlines before being converted to a cargo plane in 2015. The 32 year old plane was operated by North Carolina-based cargo carrier 21 Air on behalf of Amazon.
The accident took place around 2:00 pm local time after the cargo plane arrived from San Juan in Puerto Rico. Reuters photos after the crash showed the jet with its nose on the ground and tail tilted up. The right side of the plane had what appeared to be scorch marks.
Nearly 200 flights cancelled
The crash halted flights at the busy travel hub for much of the afternoon — with emergency teams still dealing with a fuel leak on the plane hours later. Miami International Airport has since reopened two of its four runways, but warned passengers about delays and cancellations.
Data from FlightAware, suggested nearly 200 flights had been cancelled by Monday morning. The website, which tracks flight disruptions, said 271 flights had been delayed at Miami Airport while 195 were cancelled. News agency AP cited officials from Orlando International Airport (more than 320 km north of Miami) as confirming that some flights were diverted there.