According to witnesses onboard the aircraft, a fire in a galley oven sent toxic fumes into the cabin, leaving the passengers onboard the flight from Amsterdam to Johannesburg terrified, sobbing, and shaking on 9 February, Paddle your own kanoo reports.
By: Michelle Swart
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Fire erupts on flight to South Africa
Pilots of the Boeing 777-200 decided to return to Amsterdam when the fire erupted.
The fire erupted two hours into the flight.
The aircraft was flying between the Spanish island of Menorca and Sardinia en route to South Africa when a fire erupted in the aft galley.
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The smoke and fumes from the fire entered the cabin, causing panic among the passengers.
According to Tiana Cline, who was watching a movie at the time, she saw 30 passengers standing in the aisle, shaking and sobbing in terror.
The flight attendants immediately responded by moving the passengers away and extinguishing the flames.
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Passengers still shaking and crying upon landing
Upon landing at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, a number of passengers received medical attention, some of whom, Tiana reported, were still shaking and crying.
The Dutch Safety Board (Onderzoeksraad) dispatched investigators to the airport to examine the incident.
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The cause of the galley fire is yet to be determined by either the Onderzoeksraad or KLM.
Galley oven fires, although uncommon, can occur due to overheating of debris inside the oven or an electrical overheating issue.
Flight attendants are equipped with special oxygen-depriving firefighting aerosols to handle such fires.
KLM speaks on fire
The aircrew, after ensuring that the fire was fully extinguished and had not spread, did not find it necessary to divert the flight, as was the case here immediately.
KLM informed the publication that an incident took place on flight KL591 from Amsterdam to Johannesburg.
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A fire broke out in the aft kitchen of the aircraft, but the cabin crew swiftly extinguished it.
“As a safety precaution, the flight returned to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Passengers and crew were unharmed. All passengers have been rebooked to a new flight.” KLM said.
