JEDDAH: An electrical short circuit in the cargo hold of the aircraft was the cause of the fire scare that sparked the evacuation of EgyptAir Flight 607 carrying 320 passengers shortly before its take off from the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah on Wednesday, according to a statement of the General Authority of Civil Aviation issued on Thursday.
“The maintenance staff checked the aircraft and found a short circuit on the wires connecting the lighting device in the cargo of the aircraft sending out the burning smell,” the official statement said.
The statement added that on receiving the report of the smell a Level 2 emergency was declared in the airport and all passengers and crew were evacuated at 6:20 p.m. All the passengers were safe.
Passengers had first sensed the smell in the rear of the aircraft and then experts were sent to ascertain the source of the smell, Arab News reported on Thursday.
After repairing the wiring system the plane left for Cairo with all its passengers, the statement concluded.
