, Nov. 5 -- At least seven people were killed when a large UPS cargo plane crashed during takeoff from Louisville's Muhammad Ali International Airport in Kentucky on Tuesday, sparking a massive fire and causing multiple injuries on the ground, officials said.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear confirmed that 11 people were injured and warned that the number of casualties was likely to rise. "Anybody who has seen the images knows how violent this crash is," he said, adding that several victims sustained "very significant" injuries.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said UPS Flight 2976, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11, went down around 5:15pm local time (22:15 GMT) shortly after takeoff. The aircraft was reportedly en route to Honolulu,...