New details emerge in Toronto Pearson crash: Passenger injuries updated, video shows Delta plane flipping

New details are emerging in the crash at Toronto Pearson airport, including an update on the injured passengers and a video showing the Delta Air Lines plane flip over on the tarmac.

Delta Air Lines confirmed that 21 injured passengers were initially transported to local hospitals. As of Tuesday morning, 19 have been released. 

“Our most pressing priority remains taking care of all customers and Endeavor crew members who were involved,” said Delta CEO Ed Bastian. “We’ll do everything we can to support them and their families in the days ahead, and I know the hearts, thoughts and prayers of the entire Delta community are with them. We are grateful for all the first responders and medical teams who have been caring for them.”

A strong winter storm resulted in snow blown by winds when the Delta Air Lines flight from Minneapolis, carrying 76 passengers and four crew, attempted to land at around 2:15 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 17. Officials have said communications between the tower and the pilot were routine on approach.

Ornge says they transported one pediatric patient to SickKids, a male patient in his 60s to St. Michael’s Hospital, and a third patient to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. All three suffered critical injuries in the crash but are expected to survive.

Twenty-two of the 76 passengers on board the flight were Canadian.

Deborah Flint, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), said on Tuesday that the cause of the crash remains under investigation and noted that it was too early to speculate on the circumstances. Instead, she thanked first responders and crew members for assisting.

“They are heroes,” Flint said.

Peel Regional Police Deputy Chief Marc Andrews said their response was “robust.”

“We were able to respond in a timely manner,” he said. “We were prepared for this event, as extreme as it was. In my mind, it no doubt saved lives.”

Images and videos posted on social media show a plane flipped over on the tarmac and passengers fleeing the jet as emergency crews respond to the scene.

An audio recording from the tower at Pearson Airport shows Delta Air Lines Flight 4819 was cleared to land at about 2:10 p.m. local time on Monday. The tower warns the pilots of a possible air flow bump in the glide path as the plane comes into land because of a preceding aircraft in front of it.

Fourth major aviation accident in 3 weeks

An aviation expert with more than 30,000 flight hours told The Canadian Press that it was “very rare” for an aircraft to end upside down in a crash.

J. Joseph, a 29-year veteran aviator from the United States Marine Corp., says while it’s too early to conclude what happened, conditions were “quite windy” at the time of the crash. He says high winds, especially crosswinds that blow perpendicular to the plane, can be challenging for pilots to navigate a landing.

Video posted to social media showed the aftermath of the Mitsubishi CRJ-900LR overturn, the fuselage seemingly intact, and firefighters dousing what was left of the fire as passengers climbed out and walked across the tarmac.

“We are very grateful there was no loss of life and relatively minor injuries,” Flint told reporters.

She said two main runways at Pearson remain closed and there may be delays for several days due to the plane crash.

The crash marks North America’s fourth major aviation accident within the past three weeks.

On Jan. 29, a commercial jetliner and an Army helicopter collided near Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., resulting in 67 fatalities. Two days later, on Jan. 31, a medical transport plane crashed in Philadelphia, killing all six onboard and one person on the ground. Most recently, on Feb. 6, a plane crash in Alaska claimed the lives of 10 people.

The last major crash at Toronto Pearson was on Aug. 2, 2005, when an Airbus A340 landing from Paris skidded off the runway and burst into flames amid stormy weather. All 309 passengers and crew aboard Air France Flight 358 survived.