Emirates plane from Thiruvananthapuram crash lands in Dubai

The Emirates EK 521 Boeing 777 plane crashed at 12.45 pm local time. The exact nature of the emergency is still unknown.

 

A pilot who spoke to reporters said that the plane hit the ground tail-first and skidded to a halt. 

 

"All passengers were evacuated safely and no injuries have been reported so far," an official statement said.

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All 282 passengers, including the flight crew, have reportedly escaped the disaster through the emergency exit door and are reportedly safe. The flight was completely gutted in the fire.

 

The runway of terminal three is temporarily closed following the mishap. 

 

Asianet News journalist KR Arun Kumar reports from Dubai that one of the engines caught fire before the landing. The fire completely engulfed the plane just after the passengers and crew managed to escape. Some of the passengers were injured while jumping through the emergency door.

 

 

The moment #EK521 came to a halt at DXB after landing from India. Appears to show one engine parted with aircraft⚠ pic.twitter.com/kSd4PtTGKe

— Flight Alerts ⚠ (@FlightAlerts777) August 3, 2016

 

Sai Bhakthar, one of the passengers on the plane, told Asianet News that he and the fellow passengers were preparing to disembark when he saw fumes coming out. 

 

Panic-stricken passengers rushed to the emergency door. There were no announcement or warning from the crew, he said. 

 

"We thought that we had landed safely. But suddenly, fumes started to come out and we were panicked. After jumping out, we ran to safety through the runway. Some children and women got injured while jumping. The entire area is engulfed in smoke now."