LaGuardia Landing Gear Failure on Southwest Airlines Flight Leaves Several Injured

The landing gear of a Southwest Airlines jet failed when it landed at LaGuardia Airport in New York. Several people, including six passengers were injured in the incident.

The nose gear of Southwest Airlines Flight 345 collapsed after the plane landed at the airport on Monday. The Boeing 737-700 from Nashville, touched down on Runway 4 and came to a safe stop at around 5:45 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said. However the jet's nose came to a rest on the tarmac, CNN reports.

The plane's emergency slides were deployed and passengers had to evacuate the aircraft. Others flights were halted and the airport was closed as emergency vehicles surrounded the damaged aircraft.

There were 143 passengers on board and five crew members. At least six people were injured and treated by medical personnel. Four had anxiety takes and two had minor bumps and bruises according to the Port Authority. There were no life threatening injuries.

The airline confirmed the incident and released a statement, saying "All Customers have been deplaned and transferred to the terminal. Initial reports indicate local responders are caring for five Customers and three flight attendants who have reported injuries at this time. Southwest is cooperating with local authorities, and the NTSB has been notified. "

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the incident. Early reports said the crew reported a problem with the nose gear, but air controller tapes show that no alert was given.

This incident comes just a few weeks after an Asiana Airlines jet crash landed at San Francisco International Airport last month. At least three people were killed and 180 were injured in that accident. It may take several months to determine the cause of that crash.

Sam Brock, an NBC Bay Area reporter, was on another plane next to the Southwest flight that crashed.

"It's kind of a surreal scene here given what just happened in the Bay Area just a couple of weeks ago," Brock told NBC. "I see that Southwest plane, it's actually angled toward the ground and it appears the nose of the plane in some way or fashion had somehow collapsed," he said.