LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The death toll from Tuesday’s crash of a UPS cargo plane in Louisville has risen to 13, with nine people still unaccounted for, according to local officials. Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg announced the latest fatality on Thursday, noting that a young child is believed to be among the dead.
The incident involved UPS Flight 2976, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11 cargo plane en route from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport to Honolulu, which crashed around 5:15 p.m. into an industrial area south of the airport. The plane experienced a fire in its left engine during takeoff, which detached, leading to the crash. The aircraft carried about 38,000 gallons of fuel and struck buildings, including an oil recycling facility, causing a debris field extending more than half a mile with charred metal and potential environmental impacts from spilled oil.
Three crew members were identified by UPS: Captain Richard Wartenberg, First Officer Lee Truitt, and International Relief Officer Captain Dana Diamond. Approximately two dozen people were in the affected buildings at the time.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recovered the plane’s black box, which contains 63 hours of data from 24 flights and about two hours of cockpit voice recordings. Investigators are reviewing altitude, air speed, engine information, and system statuses, along with maintenance records from the plane’s recent six-week stay in San Antonio, Texas, and CCTV footage from the area. Multiple engine fan blades and the main engine component have been recovered. The Environmental Protection Agency is addressing potential oil spillage to nearby waterways.
NTSB member Todd Inman stated that the priority is recovery of the missing, noting, “There’s so much charred, mangled metal, that not all the bodies may have been located until you look underneath certain things.” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, “This was not an air traffic controller issue… This appeared more mechanical.” The investigation involves the FBI for forensic assistance, though not due to suspicion of terrorism.
The crash investigation remains ongoing, with more bodies potentially to be recovered in the coming days.
