In Louisville, Kentucky, a UPS cargo plane faced a catastrophic incident shortly after takeoff, resulting in a left wing fire and the detachment of an engine, according to a federal investigator on Wednesday. The crash and subsequent explosion tragically took the lives of at least nine individuals.

As first responders continued their search for additional victims, the aftermath of the crash at UPS Worldport—the company’s global aviation hub—left a trail of destruction. The blaze from the crash engulfed the massive aircraft and extended to surrounding businesses, creating a perilous situation.

Todd Inman from the National Transportation Safety Board, which is spearheading the investigation, reported that the fire erupted in the left wing after the plane had been cleared for takeoff. Despite the unfolding emergency, the aircraft managed to lift off just high enough to bypass the airport’s perimeter fence before it ultimately crashed beyond airport grounds.

Inman noted that airport security footage captured the dramatic detachment of the left engine from the wing during the takeoff sequence. Both the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder have been retrieved, offering potential insights into the incident. Additionally, the separated engine was located on the airfield, providing further evidence for investigators.

Airport security video “shows the left engine detaching from the wing during the takeoff roll,” he said.

The cockpit voice recorder and data recorder were recovered, and the engine was discovered on the airfield, Inman said.

“There are a lot of different parts of this airplane in a lot of different places,” he said, describing a debris field that stretched for half a mile.

A chain reaction

The plane with three people aboard crashed about 5:15 p.m. Tuesday as it was departing for Honolulu from UPS Worldport at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. Video showed flames on the plane’s left wing and a trail of smoke.

The crash had a ripple effect, striking and causing smaller explosions at Kentucky Petroleum Recycling and hitting an auto salvage yard, Grade A Auto Parts, though it could have been worse, Gov. Andy Beshear said.

“Thankfully, a local restaurant that is right there … was missed and now is helping the search and rescue,” Beshear said. “Another blessing is this plane could have potentially hit the major Ford factory or the convention center, those are all close by, and did not.”

Some people who heard the boom, saw the smoke and smelled burning fuel were still stunned a day later.

“I didn’t know if we were getting attacked. I didn’t know what was going on,” said Summer Dickerson, who works nearby.

The number of victims is unclear

Beshear again predicted the death toll would grow, noting that 16 families had gathered at a reunification center for news of loved ones.

“I don’t know how many victims we’re actually looking for,” said Mark Little, chief of the Okolona Fire District in Louisville. “That’s one of the issues, and the debris zone is so large. Some of that debris is going to have to be moved and searched underneath. It will take us quite awhile.”

University of Louisville Hospital said two people were in critical condition in the burn unit Wednesday. Eighteen people were treated and discharged at that hospital or other health care centers.

The airport is 7 miles (11.2 kilometers) from downtown Louisville, close to the Indiana state line, residential areas, a water park and museums. People in the immediate area were told not to drink tap water. The airport resumed operations on Wednesday, with at least one runway open.

Beshear said he didn’t know the status of the three UPS crew members aboard the McDonnell Douglas MD-11 made in 1991. It wasn’t clear if they were being counted among the dead.

‘We all know somebody who works at UPS’

UPS said it was “terribly saddened.” The Louisville package handling facility is the company’s largest. The hub employs more than 20,000 people in the region, handles 300 flights daily and sorts more than 400,000 packages an hour.

“We all know somebody who works at UPS,” Louisville Metro Council member Betsy Ruhe said. “And they’re all texting their friends, their family, trying to make sure everyone is safe. Sadly, some of those texts are probably going to go unanswered.”

The governor said The Team Kentucky Emergency Relief Fund, typically used to help people in natural disasters, is accepting donations to help with funeral expenses and other hardships.

“In Kentucky, we grieve together and we support one another,” Beshear said.

Hoping for information about missing loved ones

Eric Richardson stood outside a police training academy, where people gathered waiting for word of their missing loved ones Tuesday night. He said his girlfriend, who had been at a metal recycling business near the explosion, wasn’t answering her phone. Her phone’s live location said she was still there.

Bobby Whelan, Richardson’s friend, had been in front of her in line, but had left minutes before the explosion.

“We don’t even want to think about anything but the best,” Whelan said. “All our friends were there.”

Tom Brooks Jr., who runs a metal recycling business down the street, said the crash “just rocked the whole place.”

Destyn Mitchell was working as a host at an Outback restaurant close to the airport when she heard a loud boom.

“People who just sat down to eat got up and left in under 30 minutes and packed up their food because they wanted to hurry up and get home,” she said.

What happened to the plane?

Flight records show the plane was on the ground in San Antonio from Sept. 3 to Oct. 18.

Jeff Guzzetti, a former federal crash investigator, said a number of different things could have caused the fire as the UPS plane was rolling down the runway.

“It could have been the engine partially coming off and ripping out fuel lines. Or it could have been a fuel leak igniting and then burning the engine off. It’s just too soon to tell,” said Guzzetti who used to investigate crashes for both the NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration.

He said the crash bears a lot of similarities to a crash in 1979 when the left engine fell off an American Airlines jet as it was departing Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, killing 273 people.

Guzzetti said this UPS plane and the American plane were equipped with the same General Electric engines. The 1979 crash involved a DC-10, but the MD-11 UPS plane is based on the DC-10.