Nine Killed as Learjet Crashes Into Florida Neighbourhood Near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago
Nine people have been killed after a Learjet 60 crashed into a neighbourhood in Palm Beach County, southern Florida, on Sunday, according to US officials.
The aircraft, which departed from Austin, Texas, was heading to the Bahamas when it came down near Cresthaven, less than seven miles from US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the deaths, describing the incident as a horrific tragedy.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also described the crash as catastrophic, saying the aircraft appeared to plunge towards the ground at high speed. He added that there were no immediate reports of injuries among people on the ground.
The aircraft crashed near the entrance to a mobile home park, prompting the evacuation of about 600 residents, according to Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores. Those displaced were moved to shelters.
Trump had been at Mar-a-Lago earlier on Sunday but departed from the nearby President Donald J. Trump International Airport aboard Air Force One at 11:55am, about an hour before the Learjet crashed.
Audio recordings posted on the air traffic monitoring website LiveATC.net captured what appeared to be the aircraft’s crew reporting moderate turbulence and efforts to manage ice buildup shortly before the crash.
In the recording, a person in the cockpit said the aircraft was picking up precipitation and needed to climb. Moments later, the crew issued a mayday call, reporting a rapid descent of 10,000 feet per minute before declaring an emergency as the descent reportedly increased to 20,000 feet per minute.
Storms had also been reported in the area around the time of the incident.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are expected to investigate the crash to determine what caused the aircraft to go down.
By Oluwafemi Shodipe.
