Topline
A commercial airplane suffered an engine failure after taking off in Denver on Saturday, causing massive pieces of metal debris to shower a suburban neighborhood, though authorities say the plane landed safely and there were no reported injuries.
In this photo provided by local police, debris is scattered in the front yard of a house in … [+]
Key Facts
A United Airlines flight took off from Denver on its way to Honolulu Saturday afternoon, but one of the plane’s Pratt & Whitney engines almost immediately failed, forcing the pilot to turn back and land at Denver International Airport, according to statements from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Denver airport.
The Boeing 777 plane landed safely, and no injuries were reported among its 231 passengers and 10 crew members, United Airlines told Forbes.
Neighborhoods in the Denver suburb of Broomfield — about 15 miles from the airport — were hit with huge chunks from a plane engine, and several locals heard loud explosions, though no injuries have been reported on the ground so far, according to the Broomfield Police Department.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it’s investigating the incident, and an agency spokesperson declined to provide further comment.
Crucial Quote
“We saw it go over, we heard the big explosion, we looked up, there was black smoke in the sky,” local resident Kieran Cain told CNN.
Tangent
Local police called the lack of reported injuries “absolutely shocking,” but one Broomfield resident suffered a close call. Kirby Klements told CBS Denver an engine piece landed within feet of his roof, where it could have killed him and destroyed his house, but it hit his truck instead.
Further Reading
United Airlines flight returns to airport as aircraft debris found in neighborhoods outside Denver (CNN)
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