Continental Airlines Flight 1404 skidded off the runway at Denver International Airport and caught fire, injuries dozens of passengers. The flight was bound for Houston and was taking off at 6:20 p.m. on Saturday night.
The Boeing 737 veered off course about 2000 feet from the end of the runway and came to rest in a ravine about 200 yards from the runway according to Patrick Hynes of the Denver Fire Department, who said the plane was on fire with its wheels sheared off.
Hynes described it as a surreal scene when they pulled up, with “heavy fire on the right side of the aircraft, all chutes deployed from both sides of the aircraft, people evacuating and walking up the hillside toward firefighters. The cabin area was on fire, with significant fire damage to the overhead luggage compartments, which melted and dropped down onto the seats.”
Only one of the 38 people taken to area hospitals was in serious condition. Fractures and bruises were the chief complaints, with no fatalities or critical injuries reported, according to Denver International Airport manager of aviation Kim Day.
The plane carried 112 people including five crew members. A section of the airport will remain closed into Sunday. A team from the National Transportation Safety Board is now on the scene and will begin their task of determining the cause of the accident.
More crash scene photos and video below.