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A small plane carrying five people crashed on Interstate 75 near Naples, Florida, on Friday afternoon, exploding in flames and killing two people, according to authorities. They said three of the people on board managed to get off the plane.
The plane, a Bombardier Challenger 600 series, crashed on the highway around 3:15 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration reported. said in a statement. It was not immediately clear if anyone on the ground was injured.
Preliminary information showed that the plane’s pilot had radioed that the plane had experienced a failure in both engines as it approached the Naples airport, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement Friday. The agency said it would not comment on the cause of the crash during the early stages of its investigation.
Photos and videos from the scene showed the plane’s fuselage on fire and a large plume of smoke billowing over the crash site.
The plane took off from Ohio State University Airport in Columbus, Ohio, said Robin King, Naples airport communications director.
“They were scheduled to land around 3:15 here in Naples, and about two or three minutes before that, our tower received a message from the pilots that they had lost both engines,” Ms. King said. “We don’t know exactly what that means. “We lost contact.”
The plane crashed two or three miles from the airport, King said. Three of the five people on the plane were able to get off the plane, he added.
An Ohio State University spokesperson said the plane was not affiliated with the university.
Brianna Walker, 26, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said in an interview Friday that she was heading home from Fort Myers with her friend’s mother, driving south on Interstate 75, when they saw the plane crash .
“It looked like he was trying to get to the median,” Ms. Walker said. “He starts sliding down the road, takes a car with him, the wing comes down, crushes another car and throws it into the median, then hits the concrete and immediately bursts into flames.”
Ms Walker took two videos of the accident and shared them on social media. In one, the plane bursts into flames and it appears as if someone is trying to flee the crash. In the chaotic period immediately after the crash, Walker said, he struggled to know whether people were able to get off the plane.
Ms. Walker said she and her friend’s mother feared the plane would explode, so her friend’s mother drove to the median to move around the plane.
“I told him, ‘You have to drive now.’ It’s now or never,’” Ms. Walker said. “We just booked it.”
A six-mile stretch of Interstate 75 will be closed for at least 24 hours. according to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, and local officials encouraged people to avoid the area while the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board investigated. Florida Highway Patrol agents were also at the scene.
More than two hours after the accident, Highway cameras showed Dozens of vehicles were trapped in traffic, unable to avoid several police vehicles that were at the scene.
The NTSB said “several more” investigators were expected to arrive Saturday to examine the crash. In its investigation, the agency said it would examine flight tracking data, aircraft maintenance records and weather reports.
The agency also said it planned to investigate the pilot’s license and flying experience, and anything the pilot did in the 72 hours before the crash that could have affected his ability to fly a plane. The agency asked that anyone who witnessed the crash or took video of it contact the agency.
The plane, which authorities said had registration number N823KD, was scheduled to travel to Fort Lauderdale from Naples on Friday afternoon. according to FlightAwarea flight tracking website.
A Challenger 604 with registration number N823KD is listed as part of a fleet maintained by Hop-A-Jet Worldwide Jet Charter, a private jet tour company based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The plane can carry up to 12 passengers, depending on the company.
Hop-A-Jet Worldwide Jet Charter confirmed in a statement Friday that it chartered the plane that crashed. The company said it would assist in the investigation and would not share the names of those involved in the accident.
“Our immediate concern is the well-being of our passengers, crew members and their families,” the company said.
Susan C. Playaro contributed to the research.
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