Emergency Landing Temporarily Shutters Newark Airport, 2 Injured
NEWARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) – Newark Liberty International Airport was temporarily shut down Saturday morning after a plane was forced to make an emergency landing.
According to the FAA, an Air Transat flight headed from Montreal to Florida was forced to divert to New Jersey after the pilot reported either smoke or a fire in the plane's cargo area around 8:30 a.m.
Emergency at Newark Airport.
— R.J.C (@RJCRampAgent) March 9, 2019
Nothing arriving or going pic.twitter.com/YZBsg7QplN
Fire crews quickly responded and evacuated passengers from the aircraft using emergency slides.
Airport officials closed all runways during the emergency, but reopened the airport shortly before 10 a.m. Delays resulting from the shutdown reportedly grew to over 90 minutes early Saturday.
Two people suffered minor injuries during the evacuation, according to officials.
Flight activity has resumed at #EWR after the pilot of an Air Transat flight requested an emergency landing due to a report of fire in the cargo hold of the plane. Plane landed safely. 2 minor injuries unrelated to any smoke condition. Confirm with your carrier for flight status.
— Newark Liberty Airport. Wear a Face Covering. (@EWRairport) March 9, 2019
Sources tell CBS2 that airport officials still haven't confirmed if a fire actually broke out in the cargo area. The aircraft was taken to a maintenance base as workers continue to investigate the emergency.