A private jet carrying eight passengers crashed while taking off from Maine‘s Bangor International Airport (BGR) on Sunday night.
Emergency efforts were launched after the troubling runway incident occurred around 7:45 pm local time, according to officials.
A source familiar with the situation told CNN that a Bombardier Challenger 650 business jet was involved in the harrowing ordeal.
The extent of the injuries of those on board remains unclear.
BGR released a statement just after 8:30 pm, alerting travelers to avoid the airport.
First responders are on the scene and are ‘assessing the situation,’ the brief notice reads.
One grim photo from the scene captured the destroyed aircraft smashed and flipped over on the runway.
Another depicted black smoke filling the air shortly after the business jet crashed.
A photo from the scene shows the smoking plane on the runway at the Bangor airport
The wreckage from the Sunday night crash is seen above
A spokesperson for the small airport in Penobscot County did not provide the Daily Mail with any further information. They only confirmed that the facility is closed.
Maine State Police are reportedly helping Bangor police handle the situation. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.
This emergency response comes amid widespread travel chaos across the US caused by the historic Winter Storm Fern.
Temperatures in Maine are below freezing and snowfall has been causing poor visibility.
Bangor has been slammed with snow accumulation ranging from six to 10 inches, according to AccuWeather.
A winter storm warning went into effect in Maine at 7 pm and will remain until 3 am on Tuesday.
Forecasters have described the storm as catastrophic as at least 24 states have declared a state of emergency.
Heavy snow and dangerous ice have hit 34 states across the South, Midwest and Northeast.
A Bombardier Challenger 650, the plane model involved in Sunday night’s runway incident, is seen above
A plane is seen taking off from Bangor International Airport. An incident occurred on the airport’s runway on Sunday night
Bangor International Airport released a brief statement about the incident
The horrendous weather conditions have turned air travel into a nightmare for many, with more than 11,000 flights across the US being canceled due to the storm.
This is a developing story…
