Two killed in San Francisco jet crash, 130 injured: fire chief
AFP Updated July 7, 2013, 9:48 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) - At least two people were killed and 130 injured on Saturday when an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 crashed upon landing at San Francisco International Airport, the city's fire chief said.
More than 60 people who were aboard the Boeing 777, which was flying to San Francisco from Seoul with 291 passengers and 16 crew, are so far unaccounted for, Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White told a press conference.
"At this time there are two fatalities associated with this incident," Hayes-White said.
The fire chief said that 48 people on the plane were taken directly to San Francisco area hospitals from the scene of the crash and another 82 were later transported to hospitals after making their way to the airport terminal.
An FBI agent said there was no sign the crash was the result of a terror attack.
"At this point in time there is no indication of terrorism involved," said FBI special agent David Johnson.
Hayes-White said firefighters and emergency teams rushed to the scene after the plane experienced what was initially called a "hard landing."
According to witnesses, the plane appeared to clip a seawall short of the runway, snapping off the tail and leaving a trail of debris before the aircraft finally came to a stop.
"When we arrived on scene the chutes had already been deployed and we observed multiple numbers of people coming down the chutes and actually walking to their safety, which is a good thing," Hayes-White said.
An Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 jet with more than 300 people on board has clipped a seawall short of the runway at San Francisco International Airport, snapping off its tail and bursting into flames.
Media reports say at least two people from Flight 214 from Seoul are dead.
At least 10 others, including two children, are in critical condition in a city hospital.
Video footage shows the jet on its belly surrounded by firefighters with debris scattered on the runway and beyond.
There is no official explanation for the crashlanding, but images appear to indicate the aircraft struck a rocky area at the water's edge some distance from the runway.
Pictures show the tail detached from the fuselage and the landing gear also sheared off.
US Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Lynn Lunsfor confirmed the crash-landing.
"It looked normal at first... the wheels were down," an unidentified man who witnessed the crash told CNN. "It just hit (the seawall) like that and the whole thing just collapsed immediately.
"It just pancaked immediately. The wings caught on the tarmac."
A National Transportation Safety Board team is heading to San Francisco to investigate the crash-landing.
"Everything is on the table at this point," NTSB chairwoman Debbie Hersman told reporters in the US capital when asked if pilot error was to blame.
"We have to gather the facts before we reach any conclusions."
One dramatic photo tweeted by someone claiming to be a survivor showed people streaming out of the jet. An inflatable slide was at the front entrance. Other emergency exits also appeared to have been used.
The airport was closed after the incident but two runways later reopened.
"I just crash landed at SFO. Tail ripped off. Most everyone seems fine. I'm ok," one survivor, David Eun, wrote on Twitter.
Another photo from above showed a more distressing scene, with most of the roof of the plane missing and the cabin seating area charred by fire. The plane's wings were still attached.
Passenger Chun Ki-Wan told YTN TV in Seoul by phone: "Most of the passengers escaped unhurt, following directions from the crew.
"I saw some passengers bleeding and being loaded onto an ambulance.
"Everything seemed to be normal before it crash-landed."
Survivors were ushered into a room at the airport guarded by police and airline personnel. Relatives were asked to wait a short distance away.
The plane left the South Korean capital on Friday with 291 passengers and 16 crew aboard, a spokesman for the airline confirmed.
They included 77 Koreans, 141 Chinese, 61 US citizens, and one Japanese national.
San Francisco General Hospital said it was treating six female and four male victims, including two children, all of whom were in critical condition.
Local media cited multiple witnesses who said the plane had approached the runway at an awkward angle, with several onlookers saying they then heard a loud bang.
Anthony Castorani saw the flight land from a nearby hotel.
"You heard a pop and you immediately saw a large, brief fireball that came from underneath the aircraft," he told CNN.
Firefighters surround an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 plane after it crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport in California on July 6, 2013.
REUTERS/Jed Jacobsohn
Veddpal Singh, a passenger from the crashed Asiana Airlines Boeing 777, speaks to the members of the press after an Asiana Airlines flight 214 crashed and burst into flames
as it landed at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California July 6, 2013. REUTERS/Jana Asenbrennerova
Passengers wait in line at a closed counter after an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 crashed and burst into flames as it landed
at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California July 6, 2013. REUTERS/Jana Asenbrennerova
Ambulances and rescue vehicles rush to the scene of an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 which crash landed
at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California July 6, 2013. REUTERS/Stephen Lam
Passers-by use binoculars to look over the wreckage of an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 as it rests on the tarmac after crash landing
at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California July 6, 2013. REUTERS/Stephen Lam
