Nine people have been killed after a business jet crashed into a residential neighbourhood in Florida, United States, on Sunday, according to US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
The Learjet 60 aircraft crashed on Military Trail, a six-lane road near Cresthaven in Palm Beach County, at about 12:50 local time, approximately 14 kilometres from President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.
The aircraft had departed from Austin, Texas, and was heading to the Bahamas, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said. Images from the scene showed a large crater in the middle of the road, with burning debris and wreckage scattered across several lanes.
Although all nine people on board were killed, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said there were no immediate reports of casualties among people on the ground.
Audio recordings of communications between the aircraft and air traffic control shortly before the crash captured a crew member reporting moderate turbulence and difficulties managing ice accumulation. The pilot also reported that the aircraft was picking up precipitation and needed to climb.
Moments later, the crew declared an emergency, reporting that the aircraft was descending rapidly. One of the final recorded cockpit statements was, “We’re out of time.”
Flight analysis indicated that the jet was descending at an extremely high rate before impact, although investigators have yet to establish the cause of the crash.
DeSantis described footage of the incident as disturbing, comparing the aircraft’s descent to a missile falling from the sky before a massive explosion. Unverified footage circulating on social media appeared to show the jet plunging almost vertically onto the road before bursting into flames.
Following the crash, Palm Beach County Fire Rescue declared a mass casualty incident, while local authorities began evacuating about 600 residents from a nearby trailer-park community.
Officials also reported significant damage to local infrastructure, including water lines, and estimated that the affected section of Military Trail could remain closed for at least 30 days.
Thunderstorms and heavy rainfall were reported in the area around the time of the incident, although the extent to which weather conditions contributed to the crash remains unknown.
Duffy described the incident as a horrific tragedy and said the FAA was sending a team to support an investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
President Trump had been at Mar-a-Lago earlier on Sunday and departed from a nearby airport aboard Air Force One about an hour before the crash. There was no indication that he was involved in the incident.
Authorities have not yet released the identities of those on board or established the circumstances that led to the aircraft’s fatal descent.
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