UPS plane catches fire and explodes while taking off from Louisville's airport

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Video shows a UPS plane catching fire and exploding as it took off Tuesday evening from Louisville's airport.

Police and fire crews are responded just after 5 p.m. to a reported plane crash near the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. Video, which you can watch above, shows a plane attempting to take off southbound from the airport with a fire burning off the left wing. Shortly thereafter, it explodes.

IMAGES | UPS plane explosion sparks massive plume of smoke across Louisville area

UPS confirmed Flight 2976 from Louisville to Honolulu was "involved in an accident" with three people on board around 5:20 p.m. The company wouldn't confirm any injuries of casualties, deferring to the National Transportation Safety Board as the primary source of information.

Louisville Metro Police its training academy at 2911 Taylor Blvd. will be used for "victim reunification." Chaplain and the police Victim Services Unit will be there.

The Federal Aviation Administration also confirmed the flight crashed.

"The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 was headed to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu. The FAA and NTSB will investigate," the statement continued. "The NTSB will lead the investigation and will provide all updates. This information is preliminary and subject to change.

Louisville Metro Police said there's an active scene with "fire and debris." Mayor Craig Greenberg said the plane was carrying 280,000 gallons of fuel.

A shelter-in-place was issued for everything between Outer Loop and the Ohio River, covering a large portion of the city. An earlier issuance covered just a 5-mile radius from the airport. Areas south of Outer Loop is now cleared from the shelter-in-place.

TARC said just after 7 p.m. Monday that all TARC services would be suspended for the rest of the evening. TARC3, a spokesperson said, is working with current passengers with destinations outside the shelter-in-place, all evening pickups for TARC3 have also been suspended.

In a statement on social media, SDF said "all arriving and departing flights at SDF are temporarily suspended and the airfield is closed. Passengers should closely monitor their flight status via their airline's website or mobile app."

The airport said updates would be shared to social media when they become available.

In a news release around 6:30 p.m., airport officials said screening at the TSA security checkpoint is temporarily suspended.

Gov. Andy Beshear is expected to address the media at 7:30 p.m. at Metro Hall in downtown Louisville. WDRB will stream the news conference live when it happens here.

Airport officials will hold a separate news conference at 8:15 p.m. at the Louisville Regional Airport Authority Administration building. That news conference will also streamed live here.

This story will be updated.

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