Toronto plane crash: Delta plane overturns at airport, injuring 18 people
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There were no deaths and only minor injuries, officials said. The plane carrying 80 passengers and crew members had departed from Minneapolis.
What to know about the Toronto plane crash
- Eighteen people were injured when a Delta Air Lines jet crashed upon landing this afternoon at Toronto Pearson Airport. The injuries were relatively minor, officials said.
- Emergency workers evacuated passengers from the upside-down plane and attended to the crash site.
- Eighty people were on the plane, the Federal Aviation Administration said. A total of 76 were passengers and four were crew members, Delta said.
Toronto airport runway was dry when plane overturned, fire chief says
The fire chief at Toronto Pearson International Airport said the runway was dry and there were no crosswind conditions when the Delta plane overturned.
Todd Aitken said at a briefing it was “really important” not to speculate about the cause of the crash while it is under investigation by the country’s Transportation Safety Board.
He said all emergency response to the crash went as planned. Eighteen injured passengers were taken to local hospitals, he said.
No deaths or critical injuries reported
There were no deaths in the crash at the Toronto airport, and the reported injuries are relatively minor, officials said this evening.
Seventeen people were injured, none of them known to be in critical condition, Toronto Pearson President and CEO Deborah Flint told reporters at an evening news conference.
Delta cancels all flights in and out of Toronto Pearson
All Delta flights arriving at and departing from Toronto Pearson scheduled for tonight have been canceled, the airline said in a statement.
The airline said it has issued a travel waiver to its affected customers and is working to connect with fliers whose flights have been affected.
‘I was shocked’: Witness describes seeing Delta plane upside down
Witness Jason Yin described the scene at Toronto Pearson International Airport when a Delta plane appeared to overturn upon landing.
Ground stop lifted at Toronto Pearson
Departures and arrivals have resumed at Toronto Pearson International Airport as of 5 p.m., the airport said on X.
A ground delay is still in effect, according to the FAA's National Airspace System Status, which says the average delay is 292 minutes.
The airport said all 76 passengers and four crew members have been accounted for.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz says he's in touch with Delta
Walz said on X he has been in touch with Delta since the plane took off from Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport.
"Grateful to the first responders and professionals on the scene," he said.
At least 15 people were injured
Twelve of the injured sustained minor injuries and were taken by ground for medical attention, said Lawrence Saindon, a superintendent for Peel Regional Paramedic Services.
Two others were in critical condition and were airlifted to nearby trauma centers, Saindon said.
One of the two is a man in his 60s who was taken to St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, according to Joshua McNamara, corporate communications lead with Toronto Air Ambulance. The other is a woman in her 40s, who was taken to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
Saindon said an ambulance took an injured child to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, McNamara added.
All passengers and crew members have been accounted for, the airport said on social media.
Social media video shows plane overturned
Video posted on social media and broadcast from the airport showed a surreal scene — the plane was completely upside down as emergency workers evacuated passengers and attended to the site.
“We just landed. Our plane crashed. It’s upside down,” John Nelson, who recorded the video, said as he walked away from the plane. He said that “most people appear to be OK” and that passengers were getting off the plane.
Cold, snow and wind today in Toronto
Snow was blowing at the Toronto airport all day. Lake-effect snow caused by cold air moving over the Great Lakes had occurred earlier in the day, but no snow was on radars at the time of the accident.
Winds were blowing at 20 to 30 mph, with reported gusts up to 40 mph.
As the passengers were being evacuated from the jet, the temperature was 18 degrees with a windchill temperature of -2.
Map of the flight path
Plane was carrying 76 passengers and 4 crew members
Delta said the flight was carrying 76 passengers and four crew members.
It said in a statement that Delta Connection flight 4819 was operated by Endeavor Air using a CRJ900 aircraft.
"Our primary focus is taking care of those impacted," it said.
Canadian Transportation Safety Board to deploy team
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada says it will deploy a team of investigators to the crash site.
The TSB will "gather information and assess the occurrence," it said in a statement.
The TSB is an independent agency that investigates air, marine, pipeline and rail transportation incidents.
Images show jet upturned on the runway
Cole Burston / Reuters
Arlyn McAdorey / Reuters
Emergency crews respond a plane crash involving a Delta regional jet at Toronto Pearson International Airport today.
All departures and arrivals canceled at Toronto Pearson airport
Toronto Pearson is under a ground stop “due to an aircraft emergency,” meaning all departures and arrivals are canceled for the time being, according to the National Airspace System Status from the FAA.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada will investigate, the FAA said.
