Plane crashes on Texas highway as bystanders run to help; 1 killed

A small business jet crashed on a Texas highway and caught fire on June 16, killing one person as bystanders left their cars to help passengers escape, according to authorities.

The Cessna 680A jet crashed at about 10 p.m. local time in Laredo, a southern Texas city along the Mexico border, the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed in a statement. There were six people on board, the FAA said. The plane was traveling from San José del Cabo in Mexico to Austin, Texas, when it went down.

The conditions of the surviving people on board were not known, and authorities are withholding the identity of the person who died until their family can be notified, said Jose Baeza, public information officer for the Laredo Police Department. Among the six people on board were two pilots and three teenagers, Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez said during a news conference on June 17. First responders also recovered a small pet from the plane, he said.

Rodriguez said the company that owns the plane, NetJets, called the Laredo International Airport and said the plane was having "mechanical issues." Police began receiving calls just before 10 p.m. from the local airport tower that the plane had gone down on the northbound side of Texas State Highway Loop 20, Baeza said. One vehicle was apparently struck by part of the plane as it went down, Baeza said.

First responders and others on the highway sprang into action, and footage shared on social media shows the plane in flames while authorities and bystanders try to break a window to the cockpit. At one point in video, multiple people can be seen coming out of the plane's door. Later, video posted by the Laredo Police Department shows the aircraft's charred remains being doused by firefighters on one side of the highway. Rodriguez said the bystanders who helped were "good Samaritans," and the police department is hoping to track them all down.

The first responders "undoubtedly saved lives," said Mayor Victor D. Treviño.

"While the loss of life is deeply regrettable, it is nothing short of a miracle that this tragedy did not become a mass fatality event," Treviño said. "Several police officers and firefighters placed themselves in harm's way and risked their own lives to reach the aircraft and rescue passengers."  

About five officers were treated at hospitals for smoke inhalation and later released, officials said.

A cause of the crash was not yet released by investigators. The National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement that it is aware of the crash and is gathering information.

The plane was owned by NetJets, a Berkshire Hathaway company that bills itself as the "world's leading private jet company" and offers fractional jet ownership. NetJets said in a statement to USA TODAY that the crashed jet had tail number N523QS.

"Our immediate concern is for the well-being of our Crewmembers, our passengers, and their families during this time. We are activating our crisis response and family support teams to support those affected and their loved ones, and we are deploying a team of experts to the site of the accident," NetJets said in the statement.

Loop 20 will remain closed in both directions for much of June 17, the police department said.

Authorities are asking for anyone who has video of the incident to share it with the Laredo Police Department.