Authorities say a plane made an emergency landing at Philadelphia International Airport after one of its two engines caught fire. One passenger was taken to a hospital after reporting chest pains.
Officials say the United Express flight was operated by Republic Airways and had 75 people on board. It was heading from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Newark, New Jersey, but diverted to Philadelphia after the engine caught fire.
Stunned passengers said they knew immediately something was wrong.
"You could feel right when it happened," said passenger Everett Cunningham. "You could hear the loud sound, you could feel an initial jolt."
Brian Giordano said the plane shifted, and the side where the propeller caught fire went down: "Just for a brief second, you could feel that side drag," he said.
The pilot told passengers to "brace" as they made an emergency landing. Airport officials say the two-engine DH8D propeller plane landed safely shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday and passengers deplaned.
"They told everybody, 'Don't grab your stuff, just get off the plane immediately,'" said Cunningham. "People were getting off the back of the plane, the front of the plane."
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Afterward, the aircraft was sprayed with foam.
Airport spokeswoman Mary Flannery says one passenger with a history of heart problems was taken to a hospital after reporting chest pains. No other injuries were reported.
More than a dozen passengers boarded buses to finish their journey to Newark. Others were working with the airline figure out the rest of their trips.
"I've missed my flight, so I'm imagining they're going to put us in hotels and figure it out tomorrow," said Giordano.
