Toronto Airport issued chilling warning hours before Delta plane crash
A weekend snowstorm dumped 22cm of snow at the Toronto Airport before the heart-rending Delta plane crash.
Toronto’s Pearson International Airport sounded the alarm on the snow-covered tarmac hours before a Delta Air Lines plane crashed in Canada on Monday. Although the investigation is ongoing, an aviation expert the plane en route from Minnesota flipping upside down after landing could be attributed to strong winds and icy, snowy weather at the time of the crash, per Newsweek.
After a weekend snowstorm that dumped 22cm of snow at the Toronto Airport, officials released a warning that they were cleaning up the icy runway to facilitate the safe arrival and departure of flights.
Delta Plane crash: Toronto Airport's message before the accident
“Here's a look at part of our airfield this morning as the clean up continues from this weekend's storm,” Toronto Pearson Airport shared on X/Twitter, before the Monday plane crash. “Our crews worked all weekend to keep the roughly 5 million square meters of airfield clear of snow to keep planes arriving and departing safely.”
“Today, we're expecting a busy day in our terminals with over 130,000 travellers on board around 1,000 flights,” the airport added before the accident. “Our airfield team has continued their work throughout the night to clear critical areas so planes can safely arrive and depart."
What are the authorities saying
Fortunately, no fatalities were reported after the plane crash, but the toll of injured people has since reached 18, per CNN. The airport confirmed that the 80 people on board, including four crew members, were accounted for.
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With authorities still investigating, preliminary statements from the officials made news. “The cause of the crash is still under investigation and being led by the Transportation Safety Board. It’s not appropriate for us to comment at this time,” Airport Fire Chief Todd Aitken said at a press conference on Monday.
Although more updates are awaited on the Delta Air Lines crash, he also pointed out, “The runway was dry and there was no cross-wind conditions.” Snow wasn’t falling at the time of the crash, but winds were gusting 40 mph, according to the Meteorological Service of Canada. FlightAware data further informed that the plane was travelling around 135mph before landing, which is within normal limits.