An Amazon cargo plane crashed after it overshot a runway at Miami International Airport, killing five people and injuring five others, authorities said Sunday.
“Earlier today we know that Prime Air Flight 7598 overran the runway, and now we know five people lost their lives and five others were injured,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue workers who arrived at the scene found flames and smoke coming from the aircraft, which hit multiple vehicles after gliding off the runway, according to a department official.
The rescue department said patients were taken to area hospitals, including one who was trapped under one of the “involved vehicles and had to be extricated“ by specialized personnel.
Video of the crash showed the plane hitting the ground while attempting to land on a diagonal runway. It failed to come to a stop at the end of the runway on the airport’s northwest side and crossed Miami’s NW 67th Avenue before stopping in a parking lot.
“Units arrived to find an airplane that had caught on fire as a result of this crash, with heavy flames and smoke showing,” the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue department said.
“Firefighters are working on extinguishing the fire and assessing patients,” the department said.
The Boeing 767-300 cargo aircraft, which departed from San Juan, Puerto Rico, was part of the Amazon fleet, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said that the incident involved an Amazon Air plane, which was operated by 21 Air.
“This is a fast-moving situation, and we’re still gathering details. We’re working closely with local authorities and officials to understand exactly what happened,” Nantel said. (Amazon Executive Chairman Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.)
The FAA issued a ground stop for all flights at the airport and said it would be investigating the crash.
The diagonal runway at the airport’s northwest end is disabled, said Indira Almeida-Pardillo, a spokeswoman for Miami International Airport.
The Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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