Police report that three individuals, including a child, sustained critical injuries after a Delta Air Lines flight originating from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport was involved in an accident upon landing in Toronto.
The aircraft, a CRJ900 operated by Delta’s Endeavour Air subsidiary, carried 76 passengers and four crew members when it crashed. Manufactured by Canada’s Bombardier, the CRJ900 has a maximum seating capacity of 90.
Canadian aviation officials have launched an investigation to determine the cause of the incident, which remains unknown. Emergency responders arriving at the scene described the aircraft as “upside down and on fire” in communications with air traffic control.
An air traffic controller noted in audio recordings that he saw some passengers moving around near the wreckage.
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Footage circulating on social media depicted fire crews dousing the overturned plane with water on a snow-covered runway. One passenger, John Nelson, shared a video on Facebook, narrating the chaotic scene: “We just landed in Toronto. Our plane crashed. It’s upside down.
Firefighters are here. Most people seem to be okay. We’re evacuating. There’s some smoke.”
The crash occurred at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario, amid high winds and freezing temperatures. Earlier that day, airport officials had been working to clear a backlog of flights caused by a weekend snowstorm that dumped over 22 centimetres (8.6 inches) of snow.
Emergency services reported that two of the critically injured individuals were airlifted to trauma centres, while the child was transported to a paediatric hospital. In total, 18 passengers sustained injuries and were taken to medical facilities for treatment.
The airport temporarily suspended all departures and arrivals for more than two hours before resuming operations. The disruption caused significant delays and forced several flights to be rerouted to alternative airports, including Montreal-Trudeau International Airport.
