In Seattle, 18 passengers and seven Alaska Airlines crew were given medical attention at the airport when a chemical leak during de-icing operations leaked fumes into the cabin shortly before takeoff.
"While the aircraft was being de-iced, some fumes got into the airplane," airport spokeswoman Terri-Ann Betancourt told AFP. The passengers and crew were checked for throat and eye irritation after Flight 528 to Burbank, California, was evacuated, she said.

SEATTLE, Washington (CNN) -- An accident involving de-icing solution being sprayed on an Alaska Airlines plane in snow-covered Seattle sent seven people to a hospital Wednesday, airport and hospital officials said.

The seven, who were crew members, were transported to Highline Medical Center for minor issues, such as eye irritation, dizziness and nausea, said Sea-Tac Airport spokesman Perry Cooper. Eighteen passengers were treated at the scene.

There had been an initial report that two people were badly hurt, but Cooper said all of the injuries were minor. He said six of the crew members transported to the hospital were working and one was off duty.

Caroline Boren, Alaska Airlines spokeswoman, confirmed the injury numbers and said the most extensive treatment given to the passengers was an eye wash. None of them requested further treatment or were transported to the hospital.

Matt Crockett, assistant administrator at Highline Medical Center, confirmed the hospital was assessing seven people in its emergency room. He said six of them were in satisfactory condition and another was still being evaluated.

The incident began when fumes from the de-icing application got into the cabin of Alaska Airlines Flight 528. Watch an ex-transportation official explain how the fumes seeped into the plane »

Alaska Airlines said the flight was getting ready for takeoff to Burbank, California, when passengers began to complain of eye irritation and strong fumes from the chemicals. Video footage showed several emergency vehicles around the plane on the snow-covered tarmac.

The airline said the plane, a Boeing 737-800, was carrying 143 passengers and several crew members. Boren called the situation "very unusual" and said maintenance crew had been working on the plane.

Cooper said the airline was bringing in another aircraft to transport the passengers to their destination.

Seattle has been blanketed with nearly 9 inches of snow this week, and forecasters predicted snow mixed with rain Wednesday, with an accumulation of about a half inch of new snow through Thursday.

One passenger, Joe Dial of Seattle, told CNN affiliate KIRO-TV that passengers were exposed to the de-icer fumes for 45 minutes before they were able to leave the plane.

The jetliner had pulled away from the gate Wednesday morning, but then had to return for the de-icing process, Dial told KIRO.