An electrical short circuit caused a fire to break out under the cockpit of an Airbus A321 plane that had just landed at Washington state airport, forcing passengers to urgently evacuate. Flight number 604 of Delta Airlines, which had departed from Mexico on the evening of May 6 and arrived at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington state, was parked at the airport preparing for passengers to leave the cabin when a fire suddenly broke out right below the cockpit. Video released on May 13 shows that black smoke rose as the plane’s nose caught fire.
Airport spokesman Perry Cooper said the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit. The pilot smelled smoke and activated the emergency chutes to evacuate passengers safely using emergency slides. Ashwin Menon, who was on the flight, said some passengers panicked and jostled a bit when the announcement was made by the pilot, but “overall the evacuation process went smoothly.” All 189 passengers left the plane unharmed and no one was injured in the incident. The fire extinguished itself afterwards.
Delta has suspended flights with this aircraft for inspection after the incident. Officials are currently investigating the cause of the fire.
