A second aviation incident occurred on Sunday, 29 December, when an Air Canada flight narrowly avoided disaster while landing with a broken landing gear at Halifax Stanfield International Airport.

The aircraft, operated by PAL Airlines under Air Canada flight AC2259, was traveling from St. John’s to Halifax. Reports indicated that part of the plane caught fire as it skidded off the runway. No major injuries or casualties were reported.

Passenger Nikki Valentine told CBC News that one of the plane’s tires failed to deploy during landing. “The plane started to sit at about a 20-degree angle to the left, and we heard a loud crash sound as the wing skidded along the pavement, along with what I presume was the engine,” Valentine said.

Halifax Stanfield International Airport was temporarily shut down due to the incident, although one of its runways has since reopened, according to the airport.

The incident occurred just two hours after a tragic crash involving a South Korean Jeju Air plane, which carried 181 people. As of 2:10 p.m., two passengers had been rescued, and 120 fatalities were confirmed.

Officials suspect that a landing gear failure, possibly caused by a bird strike, may have contributed to the Air Canada incident, according to AFP. Rescue operations for both incidents are still ongoing.