Plane skids off runway in Florida because of thunderstorm
A military-chartered plane that slid off the runway and into a Jacksonville river Friday night is still under investigation by the transportation safety board
A "weak tropical disturbance" had created scattered thunderstorms Friday evening across northeastern Florida, CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam said. "Flying around or through areas of convection can be dangerous as it can create heavy turbulence in the air and a wet runway, leading to the threat of hydroplaning upon landing," he said. The White House called to offer help as the situation was developing, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry said.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating after a Boeing 737 ended its flight in a north Florida river Friday night.
21 people from the 136 passengers and seven crew members were transported to area hospitals after the flight, a military-chartered passenger plane, slide off the runway and into the St. Johns River at around 9:40 p.m. No serious injuries or fatalities were reported.
The plane was bound from Guantanamo Bay military station in Cuba to the Naval Air Station Jacksonville. According to a news conference with NAS officials, the passengers were made up of a mixture of military personnel and civilians.
THUNDERSTORMS IN THE AREA
It is not known if weather was a factor in the incident, however, there were thunderstorms reported in the Jacksonville area at the time of the crash. The Jacksonville Naval Complex is just to the south of the city. The aircraft had also passed through a thunderstorm during its flight, according to a passenger who spoke with CNN.
"As we went down, we had a really hard landing," Cheryl Bormann, a defence attorney, told CNN. "And then the plane bounced and screeched and bounced some more. And it listed to the right, and it listed to the left. And then it sort of swerved, and then it came to a complete, like, ... a crash stop." Bormann also reported rain, thunder, and lightning while passengers waited to be rescued.
Officials said firefighters were able to use a cable to pull people on an inflated raft to a pier close by. At least 50 firefighters were involved in the rescue, said Chief Mark Russo of First Coast Navy Fire and Emergency Services.
SAFE LANDING WAS 'A MIRACLE'
Capt. Michael Connor, a commanding officer at the Jacksonville station, called the safe landing a miracle.
"We could be talking about a different story this evening. So, there's a lot to say about the professionalism of the folks that helped the passengers off the airplane," he said at a news conference Saturday.
The flight was taking active-duty military members, civilian government employees and their dependents back to the U.S., according to Connor.
"Some of them were coming back to see their families, some of them were continuing on travel to their homes outside of Florida," he said.
FATE OF PETS ONBOARD UNCLEAR
Also on board were numerous pets checked in a lower luggage compartment, Bormann said, but their current conditions was unknown.
The pets "have not been retrieved yet due to safety issues with the aircraft," the naval air station said in a Facebook post on Saturday.
"Our hearts and prayers go out to those pet owners during this terrible incident," the station said.
