Fiery private jet crash on Texas highway sees bystanders rush to free passengers; 1 killed
Bystanders and first responders raced towards a burning passenger plane after it crashed on a highway in Laredo, Texas Tuesday night, in a bid to free those on board.
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As flames rose from the aircraft which was tipped on its side and nearly sheared in half, video taken at the scene by Zayra Garza and verified by NBC News showed people running towards it.
Two of them were carrying with a shovel and a sledgehammer which they used to strike the cockpit glass and pry the door open.
At one point, several passengers can be seen escaping through the door. In a separate video shared by police, firefighters can also be seen dousing the plane wreckage as it lay over a highway divider.
On several occasions officers helping prop open the door dart away from the plane and double over coughing because of the intense smoke.
“It looked like part of a movie. I was in shock,” Garza, an esthetician, told the Associated Press. “What was worrying me was the fire,” she added. “I was concerned that it could have just exploded at any time.”
“Regrettably and tragically,” one of the six people aboard the plane died, Jose Baeza, an investigator with Laredo Police Department, told reporters in a briefing.
The identity of the deceased had not been released as the next of kin had not been officially notified, he added.
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One vehicle that was traveling southbound was struck by the aircraft, Baeza said. Five first responders were also treated for smoke inhalation, he added.
Baeza said the plane crashed on Loop 20 highway, which remains shut down in both directions, as he asked drivers to make alternative plans for their morning commute.
A separate dashcam video verified by NBC News showed the plane skidding down the highway as it crashed, knocking over several street lights.
It’s not clear what may have caused the plane to crash.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is already on site, he said, and other federal agencies will be arriving on the scene shortly to investigate the circumstances of the crash. Investigators are also asking anyone who may have video or dash cam footage of the crash to come through.
This was the third significant aviation accident in as many days. A B-52 crashed Monday during a test flight at Edwards Air Force Base in California, killing all eight people aboard.
On Sunday, 12 people were killed when a plane on a skydiving outing in Missouri crashed.
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