Nine Killed as a Learjet Nose-Dives Into a Florida Neighborhood; Investigators Arrive Monday
A Bahamas-bound business jet crashed at 12:50 p.m. Sunday near a busy Palm Beach County roadway, killing all nine people aboard, federal officials said. No one on the ground was reported killed, but about 600 residents were evacuated.
A business jet carrying nine people nose-dived into a South Florida neighborhood on Sunday and erupted into a fireball near a busy roadway, killing everyone on board, the Associated Press reported. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said all nine people aboard were killed and called the crash a horrific tragedy in a social media post, according to the AP and USA TODAY reports read by this desk.
The aircraft was a Learjet 60, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. It crashed at about 12:50 p.m. near Military Trail and 10th Avenue North in Palm Beach County, in an unincorporated area between Greenacres and Palm Springs, USA TODAY reported. The FAA said the jet had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was headed to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground injured or killed, the AP reported. The damage on the ground still displaced a neighborhood: about 600 people needed shelter because the crash scene blocked the entrance to a mobile home park, Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores said, according to CNN and USA TODAY. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office closed all lanes of Military Trail between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North.
Officials have not said what caused the jet to crash, and they have not identified the nine who died, CNN reported. The National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation with the FAA, and investigators were expected to arrive at the site on Sunday and Monday, the AP reported. A news conference is expected Monday.
