A business jet has crashed on a highway in Laredo, Texas, and caught fire, killing one person and causing chaos as people left their vehicles to frantically try to smash the cockpit window and free those inside.
The plane had six people onboard when it crashed on the Loop 20 highway shortly after 10pm Tuesday (3pm Wednesday NZT), said Jose Baeza, an investigator with the Laredo Police Department. It was unclear if the person who died was on the plane or the ground.
No injuries on the ground were immediately reported, though five officers were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
The plane was a Cessna Citation Latitude twin jet, according to information from FligthAware, an aviation tracking and data company. It departed from Los Cabos International Airport in Mexico at 6.19pm (11am Wednesday NZT).
It's not clear what caused the crash as it reached Laredo, about 225km southwest of San Antonio. Video posted to social media showed the plane on its side, smashed into a highway barrier. The tail was ripped from the fuselage,
Zayra Garza, an esthetician, was driving her coworkers home when she came upon the crash. She began shooting video as she approached the scene and then stopped her vehicle across from the crippled jet, which was on fire.
She saw someone inside the plane trying to break the cockpit window to escape. Soon, people got out of their vehicles to try to smash the window from the outside.
Garza’s husband jumped out of their vehicle to help and Garza then saw the door of the plane open. She said three people who looked to be teenagers rushed out, followed by someone who appeared to be a pilot. Another member of the crew tried to pull out a person who seemed to be unconscious.
"It looked like part of a movie. I was in shock," Garza said.
"What was worrying me was the fire," she said. "I was concerned that it could have just exploded at any time."
NetJets said in a statement that the crash involved one of its aircraft and it is working with authorities. NetJets is owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and allows people to buy part ownership in private jets.
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