Several Atlanta Fire and Rescue Department and police units park outside a Delta maintenance facility near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport early Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Atlanta.
John Spink/AP/Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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John Spink/AP/Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ATLANTA — Two workers were killed and another was seriously injured Tuesday when a tire exploded at a Delta Air Lines maintenance facility near the Atlanta airport.
Delta said the explosion occurred while wheel components were being disassembled for maintenance at a wheel and brake shop. The parts were not attached to an aircraft at the time, the airline said.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said it was investigating. Delta said it was working with authorities and that the cause of the explosion had not been released.
Multiple Atlanta fire and police units responded to the maintenance hangar near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport shortly after 5 a.m., the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The airport said flights were not affected, and Delta said its maintenance operations were not affected.
“The Delta family is devastated by the loss of two crew members and the injury of another following an incident this morning at the Atlanta Technical Operations Maintenance Facility,” Delta said in a statement. “We have provided our full support to family members and colleagues during this incredibly difficult time.”
Delta thanked first responders and medical crews and said the injured worker remained under medical care Tuesday afternoon.
“We are currently working with local authorities and conducting a full investigation to determine what happened,” the Atlanta-based airline said.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was in contact with Delta, but the FAA referred a request to the airline for additional information about the apparent crash. Eric Lucero, a spokesman for OSHA, said the federal workplace safety agency has launched an investigation.
The facility where the explosion occurred is part of Delta TechOps, which performs maintenance, repair and overhaul work for Delta and more than 150 aviation and airline customers around the world.
Delta TechOps president and executive vice president John Laughter said in a memo to staff that the airline would make counselors available to employees.
“We are all in this together and we will get through this by supporting each other,” he said.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens posted a message on X offering his condolences to the victims’ loved ones.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which is trying to organize Delta’s 20,000 largely non-union ground workers, called on the airline and authorities to “promptly launch a thorough investigation into the circumstances of this incident.”
