Plane Forced To Land After Fire Warning

A plane made an emergency landing Saturday after a warning light signaled a possible fire in the cargo hold. Three people received minor injuries as passengers scrambled to get out.

“There was no chivalry,” said Norma Sautman of Hollywood, Fla. “This is a life-and-death situation. People were anxious to get out.”

The pilot of Canadian Airlines Flight 295 to Toronto reported a fire on the Boeing 737 shortly after takeoff from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport with 90 passengers and crew aboard, officials said.

There were conflicting reports of whether there actually was a fire, or even smoke.

“There was smoke in the cargo area,” said Kathleen Bergen, spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration in Atlanta.

“There was no fire. There was no smoke,” said Canadian Airlines spokeswoman Shannon Ohama in Calgary, Alberta.

“We don’t know yet what caused the fire indicator light to go off.”