An American Airlines plane engine caught fire at Denver International Airport on Thursday.
This happened after the aircraft was diverted there, officials said, forcing passengers to deplane onto the aircraft’s wing as smoke enveloped the plane.
Passengers onboard the American Airlines flight 1006 were quickly evacuated at the gate.
A government source familiar with the incident told CNN that the flight was en route to Dallas-Fort Worth from Colorado Springs, before landing in Denver around 5 p.m. local time.
Videos of the incidents have gone viral on socials, showing dozens of passengers exiting the aircraft and standing on the plane’s wing as smoke filled the air.
An American Airlines spokesperson told CNN that six crew members and 172 passengers deplaned the Boeing 737-800 aircraft after the plane’s engine caught fire at the Denver airport.
The flight crew and passengers were relocated to the airport’s terminal, according to the statement.
The airline said, “We thank our crew members, DEN team and first responders for their quick and decisive action with the safety of everyone on board and on the ground as the priority.”
The plane is said to have landed at gate C38, where it caught fire, a Denver International Airport spokesperson told CNN.
The fire was extinguished, all passengers were evacuated and there were no injuries, the spokesperson said.
Video shows a large cloud of smoke from the plane rising as dozens of passengers are seen exiting the plane and running away.
A passenger at the airport told CNN, “I was terrified for those passengers. I can’t even imagine how scared they must’ve been.”
