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All but two passengers injured in the strange airplane crash at Toronto’s Pearson airport Monday have been released from hospital, the airline said, suggesting most were minor injuries, while the specific cause of the crash should be determined within a few days.
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A regional Delta Air Lines flight from Minneapolis crashed when landing in Toronto around 2:30 p.m. and spectacularly flipped onto its back, leaving the unusual scene of a passenger jet on its roof with its landing gears pointing up to the sky.
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Paramedics said out of 76 passengers and four crew on board Delta Air Lines flight 4819, three people, including a child, were sent to hospital with critical but non-life-threatening injuries. There are no reported deaths.
On Tuesday morning, Delta Airlines said that 21 injured passengers were initially transported to local hospitals and that 19 had been released.
Deborah Flint, president and CEO of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which operate Pearson airport is scheduled to hold a media briefing on the crash at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday.
While the cause of the crash is under investigation by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, the fact the fuselage of the plane remains intact suggests there will be little problem collecting the so-called “black boxes” that contain important flight data and other information on what went on in the plane before the crash.
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John Cox, a Washington, D.C.,-based aviation safety specialist said the state of the plane after the crash means crash investigators should know what went wrong by the end of the week, although it might be some time later that the information is released publicly.
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Arrivals and departures of flights at the airport resumed within a few hours of the crash Monday but delays are expected over several days with the investigation of the crash restricting access and use of runways.
Delta said it has resumed its flights from Pearson. Two larger Delta aircrafts will be operating “to allow for greater arrival and departure capacity Tuesday,” the airline said on social media.
“Our most pressing priority remains taking care of all customers and Endeavor crew members who were involved,” said Delta CEO Ed Bastian. “We’ll do everything we can to support them and their families in the days ahead, and I know the hearts, thoughts and prayers of the entire Delta community are with them. We are grateful for all the first responders and medical teams who have been caring for them.”
A spokesperson with the Peel Regional Paramedic Services said Monday afternoon that a child with critical injuries had been taken to Toronto’s SickKids hospital and two adults, also with critical injuries, had been airlifted to other local hospitals. All injuries were non-life-threatening, said Supt. Lawrence Saindon.
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