New Delhi: A business-jet carrying 9 people crashed into a South Florida neighbourhood on Sunday. Soon after the crash, the aircraft erupted in a huge
ball of fire, which crashed near a busy road. It just missed homes by a whisker, said a report in PTI. US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that all those onboard the plane had died.
The Transportation Secretary also said that the aircraft had departed from Austin, Texas and was on its way to the Bahamas. An investigation into the plane crash has been launched by the Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration is also sending a team to aid with the enquiries, he added.
The jet which crashed was a Learjet 60 and it created a giant crater on the road where it crashed, said reports. The authorities have so far not confirmed what caused the jet crash or who were the passengers onboard the plane.
The aircraft had departed the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas. According to Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for the airport, the jet which crashed was a private aircraft. He also, however, could not immediately provide details about who were the passengers on the flight.
This is definitely a tragedy, said Reynolds. The tail number for the flight was N722BD, he added.
Several people shot videos from their cars, the moment the jet plunged from the sky and then hit the ground. Black smoke engulfed the crash site. Shocked people from the neighbouring homes rushed out of homes, hearing the sound and seeing the huge ball of fire. It is not yet known whether the crash caused any damage to homes in the neighbourhood.
