A pilot and co-pilot were killed when a plane crashed into a fire truck while landing in New York on Sunday, March 22. Two people died and over a dozen others were injured in the crash.
Around 11:40 p.m. local time on Sunday, March 22, a Jazz Aviation flight, which was flying for Air Canada, crashed into a Port Authority fire truck on runway four at LaGuardia Airport.
This happened as the fire truck was responding to a separate incident. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and LaGuardia Airport officials confirmed this on X.
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The airport said emergency procedures were quickly started.
They also said the airport would stay closed to help with the response and to allow a full investigation.
Flight 8646, which was flying from Montreal to LaGuardia, was going at about 24 mph during the crash.
According to NBC News and CNN, there were 72 passengers and four crew members on the CRJ-900 aircraft.
A Port Authority spokesperson told PEOPLE that the pilot and co-pilot of the Jazz Aviation flight were pronounced dead.
They also said 41 people were taken to the hospital — 39 from the plane and two from the fire truck.
The statement added that the NTSB is at the scene.
The Port Authority Police Department is working with the airline and federal officials and will give more updates as more information becomes available.
Port Authority Executive Director Kathryn Garcia confirmed the deaths in a news conference.
NBC News reported that of the 41 people taken to the hospital, 32 were later released.
Garcia said two people in the fire truck are in the hospital and in stable condition.
The fire truck had been on the runway responding to a report of an unknown odor in the cockpit of another plane when it was hit.
LaGuardia Airport will remain closed until at least 2 p.m. on Monday, according to ABC News.
At least 18 flights have been diverted, mainly to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York or Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
The NTSB and FAA will lead the investigation into the crash, the FAA confirmed in a statement.
The investigation will look into the plane’s speed, air traffic control staffing, and whether anyone was thrown from the aircraft, as reported by the BBC citing Garcia’s news conference.
The NTSB said it is sending a team to investigate the March 22 incident involving Jazz Aviation, Air Canada Express Flight 8646, a CRJ-900, that collided with a fire truck on Runway 4 at LaGuardia Airport.
Chair Jennifer Homendy will be the on-scene spokesperson, along with Member John DeLeeuw. The team is expected to arrive today.
Air Canada and Jazz Aviation did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for more information.
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