Halifax Airport was closed for about 90 minutes Saturday night after a plane arriving from St. John's skidded off the runway and caught fire.
Passenger Nikki Valentine, who spoke to the CBC from the hangar where many of the flight's passengers were transported, said one of the plane's tires malfunctioned when it landed.
“The plane started to bank at about a 20-degree angle to the left and, as it happened, we heard a very loud noise – almost like a crash – as the wing of the plane started to skid on the pavement. What I assumed was the engine,” she said.
Valentine said the plane then slid down the runway for a “good” distance as the pilots worked to stop the plane.
“The plane shook a lot and we started seeing flames on the left side of the plane and smoke coming out of the windows,” she said.
Fellow passenger Aiden O'Callaghan said the cabin was filled with smoke when he exited the plane.
In an interview on Sunday, he said you could hear the fear in the voices of the flight attendants as they gave instructions to passengers – some of whom were screaming and crying.
He said it took an “incredible amount of time” to evacuate as some passengers tried to collect their belongings.
“I started screaming. I was like, 'Your stuff. Get the hell away, everybody needs to be safe,'” he said.
crew and 73 passengers
According to a statement issued by the airport, Air Canada flight 2259, operated by PAL Airlines, was involved in the incident. The incident happened around 9:30 pm.
A spokeswoman for PAL Airlines deferred comment to Air Canada.
Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick said the plane experienced a “suspected landing gear problem” after arriving Saturday night. The plane did not reach the terminal and the crew and 73 passengers were transported by bus.
Valentine said it was often full and it took two minutes to get everyone off the plane.
“One side of the whole plane was on fire, so everyone was in a great hurry to get off – but an orderly hurry,” she said.
Valentine said the passengers suffered no life-threatening injuries but were shaken.
O'Callaghan said on Sunday that he felt the configuration. He said that he also had pain in his neck and back.
“Other than that I'm fine, still a little shaken up,” O'Callaghan said, adding that he felt particularly fortunate after the fatal plane crash in South Korea just hours earlier.
Fitzpatrick said no one on board was injured, although a spokeswoman for the Nova Scotia RCMP who responded to the incident along with paramedics said minor injuries were reported.
Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency also assisted, but declined an interview request Sunday, instead referring CBC to the airport authority.
Prepared to start investigation
The airport said one of its runways has reopened. Four flights were diverted and there were a handful of cancellations and delays while the airfield was closed, according to a statement issued Sunday.
Officials from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are expected to conduct an investigation at the site today.
The agency said in a statement on Sunday that it is “deploying a team of investigators following the accident involving a de Havilland DHC-8-402 aircraft operated by PAL Airlines.”
The plane is still on the closed runway.
Fitzpatrick said Air Canada can return any luggage left on board when the Transportation Safety Board releases the plane.
