At least nine people have been confirmed dead after a UPS cargo plane crashed and burst into flames near the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Kentucky on Tuesday evening.
The McDonnell Douglas MD-11, which was departing for Hawaii, went down around 5:15 p.m. local time (2215 GMT), plowing into several businesses just south of the airfield.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear described the tragedy as “heartbreaking” and “unimaginable.” In a post on X, he said, “The number of those lost has now risen to at least 9, with the possibility of more. Right now, these families need prayers, love and support.”
He earlier noted that 16 families had reported loved ones missing and confirmed that search and rescue operations continued through the night and into Wednesday morning.
UPS said in a statement that three crew members were on board the aircraft but added that it had not yet confirmed any casualties.
The crash is believed to be the deadliest in the company’s history. Louisville is home to UPS’s Worldport, its largest global hub, which handles nearly 2,000 flights daily and employs thousands of workers. Sorting operations at the facility have been temporarily halted.
Video footage shared by local broadcaster WLKY showed one of the plane’s engines engulfed in flames as it attempted to lift off. Aerial views later revealed a long trail of debris and heavy smoke rising from the site as firefighters battled the blaze.
Jonathan Bevin, a spokesman for the airport, said the plane crashed about three miles (five kilometers) south of the airfield. Governor Beshear added that the aircraft struck a petroleum recycling plant “pretty directly.”
By early Wednesday, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg announced that the runway had reopened and that aviation authorities were coordinating with emergency teams.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have launched investigations into the cause of the crash.
The disaster comes amid one of the longest government shutdowns in U.S. history. Earlier Tuesday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned of “mass chaos” in the nation’s airspace due to staff shortages among air traffic controllers.
In January, a separate crash involving an American Eagle jet and a military Black Hawk helicopter near Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport killed all 67 people aboard both aircraft, ending a 16-year period without a fatal commercial air crash in the United States.
The back-to-back incidents have reignited debate over the condition of the country’s aviation safety system, which officials have long described as understaffed and hindered by aging infrastructure.