Nine Dead After Private Jet Crashes Into South Florida Neighborhood
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the deaths of all passengers on a Learjet 60 that hit the ground near West Palm Beach on Sunday.
By Natalia Costa ·
All nine people aboard a private jet died when the aircraft crashed into a residential area in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the deaths and stated that the Federal Aviation Administration is sending a team to assist the National Transportation Safety Board with its investigation into the cause of the accident.
The Learjet 60, identified by the tail number N722BD, departed from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas. Its intended destination was the Bahamas. The plane descended rapidly and struck the ground near a busy roadway, creating a large crater in the pavement and producing a significant fireball.
Witnesses inside nearby vehicles captured video of the descent. The footage shows the aircraft falling before it exploded upon impact. Flames licked at pieces of broken pavement around the crater while black smoke rose from the site. Residents described the crash as occurring just meters from houses and inches from passing cars.
Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, called the event a definite tragedy. He confirmed the aircraft was privately owned but said he could not provide details about the passengers. Authorities had not initially released the names of those on board or the specific cause of the failure.
Emergency crews from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office closed Military Trail and 10th Avenue North in both directions. They asked drivers to avoid the area while they worked the scene. One local worker reported that power in the immediate vicinity had been cut for about two hours following the impact. It remained unclear whether any nearby homes sustained structural damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board leads the inquiry into the crash. The agency is working alongside the FAA to determine why the jet went down. No further details on the passengers' identities or the mechanical status of the aircraft were available as of Sunday evening.
