Louisville airport UPS plane crash: When will debris clearance complete? Scary videos, images as death toll likely to go up

The United Parcel Service (UPS) cargo plane crash near Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport on Tuesday claimed at least seven lives, officials confirmed. The death toll is likely to go up, US media reports quoted Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear as saying.

Among the victims of the crash were the three United Parcel Service employees on board. The details of the four casualties on the ground were not immediately released.

Fire and safety units, along with law enforcement were engaged in dousing the flames after Flight 2976 crashed at around 5:15 p.m. local time as it was departing for Honolulu from Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport. More than 100 firefighters were at the scene, and were actively searching for survivors amidst debris, officials added.

The Louisville Police said the area will remain an active scene for many days and they were uncertain when the area could be declared safe for the public again. The Louisville airport, which is home to UPS Worldport - a global hub for the shipping company's air cargo operations and its largest package-handling facility worldwide - was expected to reopen on Wednesday morning, Reuters said in a report.

What we know so far about the crashed UPS aircraft

As per reports, the plane involved in the crash, an MD-11 freighter, was 34 years old.

Some media reports identified the site of the crash as 3 miles south of the airport. The site was one with several buildings in an industrial area — not far from the runway. Images and videos showed the area billowing thick black smoke, indicating a major fire involving multiple buildings.

Videos of the tragedy showed the cargo plane taking off with fire on one wing, USA Today said in a report. Soon, it crashed, causing a giant blast and fireball. The aircraft climbed to an altitude of 175 feet and reached a speed of 184 knots before making a sharp descent, according to data from Flightradar24.

Investigation focus

One key question investigators will look at is why one of the aircraft's three engines appeared to have separated from the plane before the crash. Investigators will need to establish why the other two engines couldn't save the plane after the first one caught fire.