Wednesday, December 15, 2021
A Learjet 60 bound for the Bahamas crashed onto a Greenacres road near Mar-a-Lago, killing all nine aboard and forcing about 600 neighbors from their homes with little warning.
A Learjet 60 carrying nine people crashed onto South Military Trail near Greenacres in Palm Beach County, Florida, at about 12:50 p.m. on Sunday, November 1. Everyone on board was killed, the Federal Aviation Administration and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said. The business jet had left Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was headed for North Eleuthera in the Bahamas. Outlets put the site at six to nine miles from Mar-a-Lago, and the Associated Press placed it about 7 miles southwest of West Palm Beach.
At a briefing on Monday, National Transportation Safety Board member Tom Chapman said the two-person crew reported light clear ice and moderate turbulence. Shortly after that, the jet went into an overspeed condition and started to descend fast. He said investigators have some signs the aircraft was breaking up before impact, so parts may turn up some distance from the crater. Chapman stressed that the investigation is at an early stage and would not guess at a cause. The NTSB sent about 20 investigators and expects several days of work at the scene. CBS12 reported that the dead include a Texas family of four with two young children, their nanny, family friends and the 20-year-old co-pilot, Nathalia Filgueiras of Boca Raton.
The damage on the ground went well beyond the crater. County officials said about 600 residents of a nearby mobile home community were evacuated and moved to the Greenacres Community Center on Swain Boulevard. NTSB investigator Tim Monville said one man suffered a leg injury. Military Trail is closed between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North, and the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said the closure could last weeks. Leonard High School closed on Monday. The county is sending north-south traffic to Haverhill Road and Kirk Road. The Houston Chronicle reported that the debris field is expected to stretch about a half-mile from the impact site.
Planes rarely crash into neighborhoods. When one does, the families who live nearby have to leave fast, often with nothing in their hands and no idea when they can go back. Those first few hours are where a little preparedness pays off.
If you live near the Greenacres site and find metal or debris, leave it where it lies and call law enforcement. The NTSB asks witnesses with photos or video to email witness@ntsb.gov. Leaving debris in place protects the evidence and keeps your hands off sharp metal and fuel residue.
Keep a packed bug out bag by the door for each person. Fill it with medications, copies of IDs and insurance papers, phone chargers, cash and a change of clothes. Then a sudden evacuation takes ten seconds to grab and go instead of a frantic search.
Pick a place to meet outside your neighborhood as part of your family emergency plan. On Sunday, a major road closed within minutes. If a closure cuts you off from home, a spot everyone already knows, like a relative's house or a library, tells everyone where to go. Teach the kids the plan too, so a school closure the next morning holds no surprises.
If you see a crash or any big fire, move upwind and away from the smoke, then call 911. Give the nearest cross streets, what you saw and whether anyone on the ground is hurt. Our guide on what to say when you call 911 shows the order that gets help moving fastest.
Federal investigators are still at the scene, and displaced residents are waiting to learn when they can go home. The NTSB has said it does not determine the probable cause at the scene. Be Prepared Not Scared!
