A small plane has crashed near a major highway in the U.S. state of South Florida, leaving three people dead and one injured.
The incident occurred Friday morning local time near a major interstate highway in South Florida. According to Michael LaSalle, Assistant Chief of Boca Raton Fire Rescue, three people died in the crash. After the plane hit the ground, it burst into flames, injuring a person who was in a nearby vehicle.
LaSalle added that several roads near Interstate 95, close to Boca Raton Airport, were closed following the accident.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the crashed aircraft was a Cessna 310 with three people on board. In an email statement, the agency said the plane crashed at 10:20 AM after taking off from Boca Raton Airport en route to Tallahassee.
Fire officials told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that the aircraft struck a car on a railway line, causing the track to be temporarily shut down.
In a statement, Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer said an investigation into the crash has begun. “We are deeply saddened that a plane crash occurred in our community today. More information is being gathered at this time. We are working closely with emergency responders and authorities,” he said.
He also expressed condolences to the victims and requested patience and cooperation from the affected families during the investigation.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are leading the investigation. Previously, in January, 67 people died in a mid-air collision near Washington. In February, one plane hit another at Seattle Airport. In March, a fire broke out in an American Airlines aircraft after landing in Denver, hospitalizing 12 people.