At least five people have been killed and five others injured in an Amazon cargo plane crash at Miami International Airport in the United States.
The Boeing 767-300 cargo aircraft overshot a runway shortly before 2 p.m. local time on Sunday while attempting to land after arriving from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The aircraft reportedly left the runway and struck several vehicles on the ground before bursting into flames, triggering a major emergency response at the airport.
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava confirmed the deaths and injuries during a news conference, saying emergency responders reached the crash site within seconds of the incident.
“Our focus is on the families, those who were injured, and the ongoing response,” the mayor said.
Miami Fire Chief Raied Jadallah said three of the five injured people were in critical condition. All five injured victims were transported to hospitals for medical treatment.
Some of the victims were reportedly trapped inside or beneath vehicles struck by the aircraft and had to be rescued by fire and emergency personnel.
More than 200 firefighters responded to the scene as crews battled heavy flames and smoke from the Amazon cargo plane crash.
The fire was later brought under control, although authorities reported that a fuel leak remained at the crash site.
The aircraft was operating an Amazon cargo flight for 21 Air, a North Carolina-based charter airline. Miami International Airport said the plane had overrun the airport’s diagonal runway and came to rest at the northwest end of the airport.
The cause of the Amazon cargo plane crash had not been established at the time of the initial report.
The Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded flights as emergency crews dealt with the incident. The disruption resulted in cancellations, delays and long queues at the airport during the busy Labor Day holiday travel period.
The National Transportation Safety Board is expected to investigate the crash and hold a news conference on Monday, September 7.
Amazon said it was cooperating with authorities and expressed sympathy to the families of those who died.
The aircraft’s flight-tracking information indicated that it was travelling at about 112 knots, or approximately 129 mph, when it exited the usable portion of the runway.
Flightradar24 also reported light thunderstorms and gusting winds in the Miami area around the time of the crash. Officials, however, had not determined whether weather conditions played any role in the Amazon cargo plane crash.
The incident caused significant disruption at Miami International Airport, one of the busiest airports in the United States and a major gateway for passenger and cargo traffic between the US, Latin America and the Caribbean.
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