Los Angeles: An engine on an American Airlines Boeing 767 caught fire while being serviced by mechanics at Los Angeles International Airport.
About 10,000 gallons (37,850 liters) of leaked fuel forced a runway and two taxiways to shut down, however no one got injured in the accident, said the authorities.
The fire broke out at mid day on Friday while the twin-engine jet was in the American Airlines hangar and the flames were put out within minutes, Fire Department spokesman Ron Myers said.
"The fire was limited to the engine area, but it did cause significant fuel leak," Myers said.
Hazardous-material specialists were trying to clean up and prevent the fuel from going into storm drains.
The engines of the aircraft were running when the fire started, said airport spokeswoman Nancy Castles.
Some debris from the engine were found on a nearby runway used for takeoffs and two taxiways, Castles said, prompting officials to close them for about two hours for inspection.
There were no reports of flight delays because air traffic controllers reassigned takeoffs to the airport's other three runways, Castles said.
The National Transportation and Safety Board was investigating the cause of the fire.
"The damage will be evaluated and the engine will be replaced, that's why we do maintenance work on our planes," said American Airlines spokesman Tim Wagner in Texas.
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