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CNN
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More than 160 passengers were forced to evacuate using emergency slides at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport on Saturday after a fire broke out on board a JetBlue Airways plane, fire officials said.
According to JetBlue, the incident, which occurred shortly after the plane from Barbados landed at the airport, may have been caused by an electronic device and is under investigation.
“On Saturday, JetBlue Airways Flight 662, operating from Bridgetown, Barbados (BGI), reported a customer electronic or battery failure shortly after landing at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport (JFK). We have been evacuated,” company spokesperson Derek Dombrowski said in a statement to CNN.
The New York City Fire Department reported an aircraft fire at Terminal 5 at the airport around 9 p.m., and said regional port authorities evacuated the JetBlue aircraft.
A total of 167 people were evacuated using emergency slides, according to FDNY. Five passengers were slightly injured.
“Safety is always our number one priority,” Dombrowski said, adding that JetBlue is coordinating with officials from the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.
