According to officials, a smoldering laptop computer caused passengers of a JetBlue flight that had just landed from Barbados on Saturday night to use the emergency slides.
The blazing laptop was discovered in the cabin of JetBlue Flight 662 by the flight crew shortly after landing, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
At about 8:50 p.m., the plane was taxing up to a gate at Terminal 5. when a passenger’s laptop’s lithium battery caught fire and created a “smoke condition” within the cabin, according to representatives from the FAA, Port Authority, and JetBlue.
Sixty-seven passengers were removed from the Airbus A320 aircraft using its emergency slide system by Port Authority first responders and the flight’s crew.
The Port Authority said that over 60 additional passengers disembarked the aircraft normally.
The Port Authority claimed seven people had minor injuries, including smoke inhalation and elbow bruises.
The flight crew put out the fire swiftly, according to officials.
The flight from Bridgetown, Barbados, was about an hour and a half late, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.
A JetBlue representative said, “Safety is always our top priority, and we are investigating this incident in collaboration with the FAA and NTSB.”
JOIN US ON WHAT'SAPP, TO GET INSTANT STATUS UPDATES AND BE IN THE KNOW.
CLICK HERE
