NEW YORK –
Rescuers evacuated a JetBlue flight from New York’s JFK International Airport following a small fire in a passenger’s laptop Saturday night, officials said.
Officials from the FAA, JetBlue and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said the plane was taxiing towards a Terminal 5 gate when a lithium battery in a passenger’s laptop computer exploded.
The fire was quickly extinguished by the crew of JetBlue Flight 662 from Bridgetown, Barbados.
First responders and crew evacuated 67 people from the Airbus A320 using an emergency slide system. Another 60 passengers got off the plane normally, the port authority said.
Seven passengers suffered minor injuries, including smoke inhalation and bruised elbows, the port authority said.
“Safety is always our number one priority and we are investigating this incident in coordination with the FAA and the NTSB,” JetBlue said in a statement to the Daily News.
