Power bank catches fire inside IndiGo plane, five injured

“On 5 May 2026, while IndiGo flight 6E 108 from Hyderabad to Chandigarh was stationary after landing, an incident involving a customer’s personal electronic equipment catching fire was reported. In the interest of safety, an immediate evacuation was carried out, and all the relevant authorities were immediately informed,” an official statement read.

“In the interest of safety, an immediate evacuation was carried out and all relevant authorities were informed. All customers were safely escorted to the terminal and are being attended to.”

According to an airport official, a passenger seated on 39C, identified as Devansh, alerted the crew after noticing fire in his power bank.

Sensing the gravity of the situation, the cabin crew promptly used onboard fire extinguishers to douse the flames. However, smoke had already spread inside the cabin, the official said.

After the aircraft reached Bay No. 1, the crew declared an emergency around 3.35 pm and opened the emergency exits. Passengers were evacuated using inflatable slides. The situation briefly turned chaotic during the evacuation.

A passenger seated on 25F, Richa Acharya, suffered an ankle injury after slipping while descending the slide amid the rush. In total, five people, including two children, sustained minor injuries.

An Indian Air Force fire tender reached the spot around 3.38 pm, but by then the fire had been fully contained, and no further intervention was required.

Following the incident, crew member Abhishek escorted the injured to a private hospital in Zirakpur, where they were given first aid.

Talking with The Indian Express, Saurav Acharya, a banker, who was travelling with his family from Goa to Hyderabad to Mohali, said his wife Richa Acharya, an employee with the Punjab Health Systems Corporation, sustained multiple fractures in her leg during the evacuation. “She slipped while coming down the emergency slide in the chaos. She is undergoing treatment and is being prepared for surgery at another hospital in Mohali,” he said, adding that the crew “took proper care of us and ensured all assistance till hospitalisation.”

The airline added that the aircraft will undergo a thorough inspection before being cleared for further operations, reiterating that passenger and crew safety remains its top priority.