Denver Airport Runway Incident Forces Emergency Evacuation

(MENAFN) A Frontier Airlines departure from Denver International Airport was abruptly halted after a person illegally entered the airfield and was struck by an aircraft during takeoff, according to reports from local authorities.

The individual reportedly crossed a security fence around two minutes before the collision occurred late Friday night. Airport officials indicated that the person had made their way onto the runway before being hit by the aircraft’s engine area, with footage from the scene showing significant damage consistent with turbine impact.

During the emergency, the flight crew alerted air traffic control as the situation unfolded. The pilot stated:
"We’re stopping on the runway," the pilot told the control tower. "We just hit somebody. We have an engine fire… An individual was walking across the runway."

Air traffic personnel quickly responded by shutting down the runway and informing relevant teams of the severity of the situation. In communications shared between controllers, one operator said:
"I do have limbs on the runway… I’ve got what appears to be a deceased person on the runway."

Emergency responders arriving at the scene later confirmed the presence of remains on the runway, with one responder also reporting:
"there does appear to be human remains on the runway."

The impact triggered an engine fire on the aircraft, a narrow-body Airbus A321, forcing an emergency evacuation of all passengers using inflatable slides as smoke filled the cabin. Out of 224 people onboard, 12 sustained minor injuries, and five were taken to hospital for further treatment.

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