The manager of an auto repair shop near Muhammad Ali International Airport says he's lucky to be alive after a UPS plane crashed in a fiery explosion just feet from his business Tuesday evening.
Sabit Aliyve was finishing his work day at Kentucky Truck Parts & Service, waiting for one more customer to pick up their truck, when the unthinkable happened. An MD-11F UPS plane crashed just feet away from the shop's front entrance on Knopp Avenue.
"I thought it was like, we're in a war or something. Or somebody dropped a bomb or something like that. It knocked me off my feet so you can imagine how strong it was," Aliyve said.
The shop had only been open for a month when the crash occurred. Surveillance video from the property captured just how close the plane came to the building.
"I fell down away from the explosion. It knocked me down. Then at the same time I walked out. I was thinking these were my last moments so I took the video," Aliyve said.
The heat from the crash was so intense that Aliyve could feel it from inside the shop.
"A lot of smoke. And while I was recording the video, it was so hot -- the heat was so strong, I could feel it on my hands. My body started getting hot," Aliyve said.
Aliyve and the shop owner ran for cover, hopping over an unfinished portion of the property's fence. The two were trapped on the scene for more than two hours before police officers with bolt cutters freed them.
"I see police officers on the right, we start hollering at them. Yelling, whistling at them. They finally see us. They've got the bolt cutters for the gate, they cut the lock, and that's how we get out," Aliyve said.
Now Aliyve is anxious to return to the property, worried that some of his customers' vehicles might have been damaged by the heat. Despite the traumatic experience, he says he's thankful to be alive.
"I've never seen an explosion like this one, or an airplane crash. It was tragic," Aliyve said.
