The Hillsborough fire district, along with other fire and emergency services departments around the county, was dispatched to standby for a commercial airliner who was flying low and dumping fuel. Continental Flight 9 had left Newark at 11:25 am bound for Narita, Japan. After circling and dumping fuel for 45 minutes over large portions of Hillsborough Township and Franklin Township, the flight landed safely back at Newark around 12:15 pm without incident. The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed that Continental Flight 9 returned to Newark Liberty International Airport owing to a hydraulic problem and that circling and dumping fuel before landing is a standard practice to lighten an airplane’s load to achieve a safe weight for an emergency landing.