Delta plane dumps jet fuel on LA schools

An airplane making an emergency landing in Los Angeles dumped jet fuel on six nearby schools on Tuesday, inflicting minor injuries to 60 adults and children, the authorities said. Shortly after Delta Flight 89 took off from Los Angeles International Airport, the pilot turned the plane around because of an issue with the engine, a Delta spokeswoman said. On its way back to the airport, the plane dumped fuel over a five-mile swath that included five elementary schools and a high school, including at least one school where students were playing outside on a playground, school and fire officials said. The students and staff members complained of minor skin irritation and breathing problems, but all declined transportation to hospitals. The plane, a Boeing 777-200, had taken off at 11:32 a.m. and was bound for Shanghai, but it returned to the tarmac 15 minutes after takeoff, said Heath Montgomery, a spokesman for the airport. He said no one on the flight had been injured.<br/>The FAA said planes were supposed to release fuel over “designated unpopulated areas, typically at higher altitudes so the fuel atomizes and disperses before it reaches the ground.” The agency said it was investigating the dump. Adrian Gee, the spokeswoman for Delta, said the flight had dropped the fuel “to reach a safe landing weight.” She said airline officials “share concerns regarding reported minor injuries to adults and children.”<br/>