American Airlines passenger recounts smoke evacuation in San Francisco

An American Airlines flight was evacuated after the crew reported smoke in the cabin while the plane was parked at its gate at San Francisco International Airport, according to airport officials.

The airline said the smoke came from a laptop in a passenger’s bag.

Jan Jancay, a passenger on the flight with his father, told ABC News that when they boarded the plane, “the smell was like burning cables,” and then it got stronger.

Shortly after, Jancay said he saw huge flames from under his father’s seat and from all sides. The smoke became so thick, he said, “we thought we were going to pass out.”

“We tried to get up but we were already buckled in,” Jankay said, adding that he and his father quickly unbuckled their seat belts and tried to go to the rear emergency exit.

Jankay’s father, who was sitting on top of the passenger’s bag that caught fire, said he threw the bag out of the emergency exit door.

The San Francisco Fire Department said three people suffered minor injuries while evacuating the building via emergency ramps. One of the three injured people was taken to a local hospital, according to an update from the San Francisco Fire Department Friday evening.

American Airlines said it was aware of a passenger who suffered minor injuries while exiting the plane.

The San Francisco Fire Department confirmed that the incident was caused by a battery fire and the fire was extinguished before firefighters arrived at the plane.

The airline said some passengers were evacuated via emergency slides, while others got off the plane’s bridge.

The Airbus A321 was scheduled to depart for Miami at the time.