Dulles International Airport fire: United Airlines flight involved; scary video emerges
A massive plume of smoke could be seen around the Dulles International Airport in Virginia on Saturday
A massive plume of smoke could be seen around the Dulles International Airport in Virginia on Saturday. Initial reports stated that a United Airlines plane experienced engine issues that resulted in a brushfire near the runway. The flight made an emergency return. The cause of the fire has not been confirmed yet.
One person at the airport tweeted about the incident. “On a plane about to take off at Dulles Airport in Washington. Runway closed due to an “incident”. Lots of smoke and flashing lights from emergency vehicles. Praying it’s not a crash,” they noted on X, platform formerly known as Twitter.
An alert page posted about ‘ a brush fire has erupted at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, prompting the closure of the runway to both departing and arriving flights as firefighters work to extinguish the fire, with assistance being provided by both the Ashburn and Sterling Volunteer Fire’.
Authorities are yet to issue a statement.
This comes nearly a month after a vehicle transporting passengers at the Washington Dulles International Airport crashed into a building, injuring about 18 passengers and also causing some damage to the terminal.
The incident occurred around 4:30 PM when a mobile lounge, which transports passengers between the terminal and aircraft from Concourse D, struck a dock at an angle as it was pulling up to the terminal at Washington Dulles International Airport, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said.
The dock at the airport is where the vehicle carrying passengers stops to let people into the concourse. According to authorities, the passengers who were hurt in the incident sustained non-life-threatening injuries and were transported to the hospital by the fire department.
“The airport is open and operating as normal on Monday evening,” the authorities' statement added. Detailing the crash, Crystal L. Nosal, spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, said at the time.
According to Washington Dulles International Airport’s website, there are a total of 19 mobile lounges at the airport functioning which can transport nearly 102 passengers. The mobile lounges are about 54 feet (16.5 meters) long and 16 feet (4.9 meters) wide. The fleet of mobile lounges carries passengers between the terminal and Concourses A and D.
