Airliner skids into St. Johns River at NAS Jacksonville (original) (raw)

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate a passenger airplane that slid off the end of a runway Friday night and into the St. Johns River at Naval Air Station Jacksonville.

Base officials say the incident occurred about 9:40 p.m. when a Boeing 737-800 arriving from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay in Cuba slid into the St. Johns River at the end of NAS Jacksonville's runway.

There were 136 passengers and seven air crew on board, all accounted for as Navy security and emergency response personnel remained on the scene to monitor the situation, base officials reported.

UPDATE | ‘Miracle on the St. Johns:’ All 143 aboard jet survive NAS Jacksonville crash

Fire department spokesman Tom Francis identified the Boeing 737 as a chartered aircraft from Miami Air International, and said rescue units transported 21 adults from the site to area hospitals.

"The 21 individuals we transported were all listed in good condition, no critical injuries sustained," Francis said. "We had over 80 JFRD members at the scene."

Orange Park resident Liz Torres said she heard what sounded like a gunshot Friday night all the way down in her community, then joined her neighbors outside to look when they saw a news alert. Then she drove down to the Target parking lot where police and firefighters were staging to find out more.

"I've never seen anything like this," she said.

PHOTOS | Boeing 737 jet skids off runway into St. Johns River

The NTSB announced early Saturday that it had sent a Go Team to investigate Miami Air International flight 293. The Sheriff's Office said its Marine Unit helped Navy rescue efforts after the airplane slid into shallow water.

"The plane was not submerged. Every person is alive and accounted for," the Sheriff's Office said, two photos showing the airliner up to the bottom of its wings in the water, the tip of its nose fallen off.

Four patients were transported to Jacksonville's Memorial Hospital, four more to to Orange Park Medical Center, and three to Orange Park Medical Center’s Park West ER. All were being evaluated and treated for non-life threatening injuries, hospital officials said.

It's unclear if the stormy weather factored into the incident, although First Coast News meteorologist Tim Deegan confirmed heavy rain and limited visibility in the naval air station area at the time of the incident.

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry confirmed the incident in a Friday evening tweet, saying he was briefed by Jacksonville Fire and Rescue and had also received a call from the White House as the situation was developing.

"They are on the scene. While they work please pray," the mayor tweeted.

The plane ended up about 100 feet off the end of the runway. Efforts to contain leaking jet fuel are also underway. Some pets were reported still in the cargo area as well.

The last time an airplane went into the river near the end of the runways at NAS Jacksonville was almost exactly 35 years ago. The Navy Convair C131-F military transport plane had 21 aboard as it had just taken off from NAS to Guantanamo went into the river after an engine caught fire. One person survived that May 1, 1983, crash.

The Times-Union and Jacksonville.com will have more as it becomes available.

Times-Union writer Andrew Pantazi contributed to this article.

Dan Scanlan: (904) 359-4549