Delta Air Line flights from Minneapolis capsized after crashing Monday afternoon while landing at Toronto Pearson Airport.
Delta Flight 4819 crashed while landing around 2:45pm local time, Federal Aviation Administration officials said in a statement as strong gusts of wind and drifting snow were reported in the area.
All 80 people were evacuated, but the full extent of the injury was still uncertain, FAA officials said.
Lawrence Saindon, supervisor of the Peel Area emergency services, said nine people were seriously injured, including those who were airlifted to the Trauma Center. One pediatric patient was also in a serious but non-life-threatening state.
The remaining seven injured were taken to hospitals with mild to moderate injuries.
In a statement, Delta said he was aware of the crash report and was “working to see the details.” Officials said the Canadian Road Safety Commission will lead the investigation.
The FAA issued a ground halt order in response to the crash. Canada's Minister of Transport Anita Anand has said on social media that he is “following a serious incident closely.”
According to the Environment Canada Meteorological Service, at the time of the crash, there was a gust of winds of 38 mph and a strong wind was coming from the west at about 29 mph. We also reported that it would snow. Toronto temperatures were expected to reach a high of 20 degrees Fahrenheit on Monday.
The airport said it was expecting a “busy day” as airlines caught up after a back-to-back snowstorm, including a weekend blizzard where the airlines dumped more than eight inches of snow.
The flight was operated by Endeavor Air, a subsidiary of Delta. This usually drives small planes on short routes from the parent airline.
Endeavor's fleet includes around 120 Bombardier CRJ-900s, the types of planes involved in Monday's crash. These aircraft consist of 70 or 76 seats.
The aircraft is about 16 years old, according to Federal Aviation Administration records. Due to regular maintenance, such passenger jets often operate for more than two to three decades.
According to CIRIUM, it exceeds the CRJ-900s used by airlines around the world. According to Cirium data, aircraft that have been in operation for over 20 years have a safe safety record.
Air traffic controllers advised another inbound flight on the emergency shortly after the plane was overturned, according to audio transmissions.
“We just crashed here on Runway 23,” he said.
Ian Austen, Niraj Chokshi and Neil Vigdor contributed to the report.
