Plane skids off runway in south east China

A passenger plane skidded off a runway while taxiing in a southeast China airport on Sunday noon, local authorities said.

Three passengers were slightly injured, according to caacnews.com.cn, a website run by the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

The Joyair flight was scheduled to depart at 11:40 a.m. from Fuzhou Changle International Airport in Fuzhou City, capital of Fujian Province, but careered off the runway. A Xinhua journalist at the airport reported seeing smoke from the plane and passengers fleeing the cabin.

Pictures on microblog Sina Weibo show one of the wings to be broken. A tank can be seen dousing the plane with water.

According to caacnews.com.cn, the aircraft, coded JR1529, flies between Fuzhou and the eastern city of Yiwu in Zhejiang Province.

There were 45 passengers and seven cabin crew on board when the accident happened, according to the website. The airport will be closed until 2:30 p.m..

The Joyair fleet consists of mainly domestic-made aircraft.