At least 12 people are dead after the left engine separated from a UPS plane when departing Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Kentucky on Tuesday and it crashed in a ball of flames, authorities said.
The aircraft’s three crew members and nine others who have not yet been identified are among the deceased, according to Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg.
Gov. Andy Beshear said at a press briefing earlier Wednesday that one of the victims is believed to be a young child, “which makes it all the harder.”
The coroner is at the scene attempting to determine the identities of the victims, but Beshear said that will be “a little more difficult” due to the condition of the bodies.
Two individuals who were hospitalized still remain in critical condition, Beshear said.
Beshear, accompanied by Greenberg and Congressman Morgan McGarvey, visited the crash site on Wednesday, with McGarvey saying it was “like a scene out of a ‘Terminator’ movie.”
“The smells, the sights. These are things that are not going to escape us when we close our eyes tonight,” McGarvey said.
Earlier in the day, Greenberg said earlier in the day — when the death count reached nine — that he expected it to rise.
“There are no words that I can provide to any family members that are searching for information about someone that they may believe might have been near the scene of the crash that they haven’t heard from yet,” Greenberg told ABC News Live on Wednesday.
A “very large field of debris” still remains at the site of the crash as officials try to “find any other victims as soon as we possibly can,” Greenberg said.
During a briefing on Wednesday, the National Transportation Safety Board said the plane’s black boxes have been recovered and they will be sent to Washington, D.C., for analysis.
While a probable cause of the crash was not revealed, the NTSB said the plane’s left engine detached after a “large plume of fire” erupted from the left wing.
“The plane lifted off and gained enough altitude to clear the fence at the end of runway 17R. Shortly after clearing that fence, it made impact with structures and the terrain off of the airport property,” according to NTSB board member Todd Inman.
Beshear declared a state of emergency on Wednesday to aid in the response to the plane crash. He said he believes the fatality count will grow to at least one more victim.
University of Louisville Health said it received 15 patients in the airport incident, two of whom were in critical condition in a burn center.
“Louisville looked apocalyptic last night,” McGarvey said on Wednesday.
Search and recovery efforts will continue for “at least a week or longer,” Okolona Fire Protection District Chief Mark Little said on Wednesday.
Video captured the moment the plane — loaded up with thousands of gallons of fuel for a long-distance flight to Hawaii — crashed, resulting in a large fireball.
Two businesses on the ground were impacted by the crash, Beshear said.
One business, Kentucky Petroleum Recycling, appears to have been “hit pretty directly,” while another business, Grade A Auto Parts, was also impacted, Beshear said. Two employees from Grade A Auto Parts were unaccounted for, he said.
“It may be some time before we can account for everyone or know that no one else was on the grounds,” Beshear said.
Jefferson County Public Schools said all schools will be closed on Wednesday due to a shelter-in-place order, but are expected to open on Thursday after inspections confirmed the water and air quality were safe.
UPS Flight 2976 crashed around 5:15 p.m. local time on Tuesday, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 freighter plane was headed to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, the agency said.
The plane crashed approximately 3 miles south of the airfield, according to officer Jonathan Biven with the Louisville Regional Airport Authority.
Members of the National Transportation Safety Board arrived to the crash site on Wednesday and will “analyze every bit of what happened,” McGarvey said.
CCTV security coverage showed the “engine detaching from the wing during the takeoff roll,” Inman said.
The NTSB will be on the scene “for at least a week,” as the debris from the crash covers half a mile, Inman said. The FBI is also assisting in the investigation, the NTSB said.
The NTSB did not reveal when they will release a preliminary report on the crash.
The plane was carrying approximately 220,000 pounds of jet fuel, which is about 38,000 gallons, officials said.
The airport is home to UPS Worldport, the company’s massive package handling facility, which will remain closed on Wednesday.
“Our heartfelt thoughts are with everyone involved,” the company said in a statement. “UPS is committed to the safety of our employees, our customers and the communities we serve. This is particularly true in Louisville, home to our airline and thousands of UPSers.”
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.
The airport reopened at about 8 a.m. Wednesday.
Authorities said they expect the scene to be active for the next several days.
There wasn’t any hazardous cargo on board the plane, according to Beshear.
ABC News’ Luke Barr, Sam Sweeney and Ayesha Ali contributed to this report.
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