A private jet with five people on board has crashed into a large body of water after skidding off an airport runway in Oregon.
Emergency services were alerted to the horror collision at 6:12am through an automated iPhone crash notification. The small aircraft overshot the runway at Southwest Oregon Regional Airport before slamming into Coos Bay, the North Bend Fire Department (NBFD) said. Public safety crews were said to have been clearing hazardous materials spilled during the crash, whilst also securing the aircraft for removal. Four passengers and one crew member were rescued and rushed to a nearby hospital, although details of their injuries have not yet been revealed.
Southwest Oregon Airport has closed down following the crash and members of the public have been urged to avoid the area. Air traffic on the main runway will also be paused while officers continue their enquiries.
It comes after a series of terrifying plane crashes across the US, including one in Atlanta Georgia – which left two people dead after the smashing into a woodland just minutes after takeoff. The light aircraft took off from Georgia’s Covington Municipal Airport on Saturday, February 15 – and was only in the air for around 20 minutes before the fatal plunge killed the two people onboard. Officials believe both died instantly in the crash.
On January 29, an American Airlines plane collided with a military helicopter mid-air in before plunging into a river in Washington – killing all 67 people on board. Authorities confirmed there were no survivors after the two aircrafts plummeted into the Potomac River in America‘s deadliest aviation disaster since 2001.
US Figure Skating, the national governing body for the sport in the US, said in a statement that several members of its skating community were on the passenger plane returning home from the national development camp in Kansas. “We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims’ families closely in our hearts,” the statement said. “We will continue to monitor the situation and will release more information as it becomes available.”
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