Plane dumps fuel over schools near Los Angeles airport
A passenger plane has dumped fuel over several schools as it made an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport.
At least 60 people, many of them children, were treated for skin irritation and breathing problems.
Fuel may be dumped in emergency landings, but only over designated areas and at a high altitude, aviation rules stipulate.
The Delta Airlines flight returned to the airport due to an engine issue.
Delta confirmed in a statement that the passenger plane had released fuel to reduce its landing weight.
The children and adults treated following the dumping incident were connected with at least six local schools. All the injuries are said to be minor.
At Park Elementary School in Cudahy, some 16 miles (26km) east of the airport, two classes of children were outside when the fuel was released.
Elizabeth Alcantar, mayor of Cudahy, told the Los Angeles Times newspaper: "I'm very upset. This is an elementary school, these are small children."
Allen Kenitzer, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, told Reuters news agency: "The FAA is thoroughly investigating the circumstances behind this incident. There are special fuel-dumping procedures for aircraft operating into and out of any major US airport.
"These procedures call for fuel to be dumped over designated unpopulated areas, typically at higher altitudes so the fuel atomises and disperses before it reaches the ground."
Many planes, especially those used for long-haul flights, take off weighing more than their maximum allowed landing weight due to the amount of fuel they carry.
This weight is normally reduced as fuel is consumed during the flight.
But when a flight is cut short the aircraft may still be too heavy to land safely. In such situations the pilot may take the rare decision to dump fuel and reduce the aircraft's weight quickly.
Only certain planes have this capability, and it is done through valves in the aircraft's wings which allow fuel to be pumped out by a specific amount.
Delta 777 Dumps Fuel Over School (Updated)
A Delta Air Lines Boeing 777 dumped fuel that fell on a Los Angeles-area school as it returned to LAX after an “engine issue” today. The flight, headed for Shanghai, had an undisclosed engine issue after departure and had to dump fuel to achieve landing weight. Los Angeles County Fire dispatched more than 70 firefighters and paramedics to the Park School Elementary school to treat 17 children and nine adults. None required hospitalization.
In addition, the Los Angeles Times is reporting that all together some 60 individuals were treated, 20 of them children, at this school and other locations along the flight path of the Delta flight. None of the other affected individuals required hospitalization.
“Shortly after takeoff, Flight 89 from LAX to Shanghai experienced an engine issue requiring the aircraft to return to LAX. The aircraft landed safely after an emergency fuel release to reduce landing weight,” a Delta spokesperson told the Los Angeles Times.
The Park school is the city of Cudahy, about 13 miles east of LAX and on the approach to the runways typically in use. Park sixth grader Josue Burgos told the LA Times, “We came out and we were playing, and the airplane was outside and we thought it was rain, but then we knew it was throwing gas on us, and everybody started to run. We went to the auditorium and we knew what happened. We went back to class. We stayed for one hour and then we went home.”
According to reports, the FAA will be investigating the incident. “The FAA is thoroughly investigating the circumstances behind today’s incident involving a Delta Air Lines flight that was returning to Los Angeles International Airport. There are special fuel-dumping procedures for aircraft operating into and out of any major US airport. These procedures call for fuel to be dumped over designated unpopulated areas, typically at higher altitudes so the fuel atomizes and disperses before it reaches the ground,” the agency said in a statement.
A Boeing 777-200ER’s maximum landing weight can be some 186,000 LBS lower than its maximum takeoff weight. It’s not known how heavy Delta 89 was at takeoff and, therefore, how much fuel it would have to dump to reach a safe landing weight.
The flight landed safely at LAX.
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