Officials say that our people were taken to the hospital after an external battery on a United Airlines flight caught fire early Tuesday.
United told ABC News that the device was found burning in a seat back pocket in first class shortly after takeoff. Officials said that the fire didn’t spread because the flight crew put the battery in a thermal containment bag.
In a statement, the airline said, “Our crew moved quickly to stop the device.”
The flight to Newark then made a safe return to San Diego International Airport, where the local fire department and medical staff were waiting for it.
According to United, four flight attendants were taken to the hospital as a precaution, and two passengers were checked out on the spot.
United said, “We thank our crew for acting quickly to make sure everyone on board the plane was safe, and we are making plans to get our customers to their destinations.”
The Federal Aviation Administration says that there were 57 incidents with lithium batteries on planes last year.
The FAA said it will look into what happened.
Matt Fuhrman from ABC News also helped with this story.
