Fire scare on plane at Newark

A SMOKING PHONE charger on a United Airlines flight leaving Newark Airport sparked an emergency response, with firefighters boarding the plane while it sat on the tarmac, officials said.

The Chicago-bound plane was about to take off from Newark about 11:30 a.m. when a passenger’s cell phone charger started smoking, according to officials and passenger Molly Bangs, who tweeted the entire incident.

“A kid’s cell phone started smoking just before we were about to take off,” she wrote. “A fire truck is now coming towards us on the tarmac. Can’t make this stuff up. At least @United is now giving us cookies.”

The charger was given to a flight attendant, who put the item in a fire-resistant bag, sources said.

The crew then doused the item with water, a Port Authority spokesman said. No injuries were reported.

After firefighters (photo) gave the all clear, the plane returned to the terminal under its own power and the passengers were asked to disembark.

“We need to let passengers off the plane, Molly,” a United Airlines representative tweeted to Bangs. “We are sorry this is happening and we wish this wasn’t the case.”