John Jefferson
A medevac plane carrying a child, a mother and four crew members crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in Philadelphia on Friday night. All those aboard the plane were killed in the tragedy. While there is not much known about who was aboard the doomed medical flight, some details have been made public.
Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, the global ambulance flight company operating the plane, said its Learjet 55 crashed while departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport at about 6:30 p.m. The company said that all those aboard the flight were Mexican nationals.
“The plane was loaded with jet fuel that’s highly flammable. There is no indication that anybody survived, and by the debris field, I would be pleasantly surprised to learn otherwise,” said Air Ambulance spokesperson Shai Gold.
Gold described the pilot and co-pilot as being “very seasoned,” saying that “they know the job, and they do it many times.”
CHILLING AUDIO REVEALS FINAL MOMENTS BEFORE PHILADELPHIA PLANE CRASH
Later, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed that the six nationals aboard the plane had been killed. Sheinbaum added that she instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to do anything necessary to support the victims’ families.
In addition to the child and mother, there was a pilot, co-pilot, physician and a paramedic aboard the plane.
PENNSYLVANIA GOV. SHAPIRO PRAISES ‘UNIFIED RESPONSE’ TO ‘AWFUL’ AVIATION DISASTER
Shriners Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia confirmed in a statement on X that the young girl had been a patient.
“Shriners Children’s is heartbroken to confirm that one of our pediatric patients and the child’s mother were aboard the Jet Rescue Air Ambulance that crashed in Philadelphia last night,” the hospital’s post read. Citing patient privacy concerns, the hospital did not give further details.
“Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of the medical crew and pilots who were also lost in this tragic event – as well as all of the people who were affected on the ground – and we’re thankful to the first responders for their quick action.”
In addition to those aboard the flight, several people on the ground near the crash were injured. This included an 11-year-old boy, a 31-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman, according to NBC10, a local news outlet.
STUNNED PHILADELPHIA CRASH EYEWITNESS ASKS ‘HOW DID THIS HAPPEN TWICE IN A WEEK?’
President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to react to the tragedy.
“So sad to see the plane go down in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More innocent souls lost. Our people are totally engaged,” Trump wrote. “First Responders are already being given credit for doing a great job. More to follow. God Bless you all.”
The crash in Philadelphia comes just days after a deadly aircraft collision near Washington, D.C., that took the lives of 67 people. The cause of the crash in Philadelphia, as well as the total number of casualties, remains unknown.
Alexandra Koch, Lorraine Taylor and Alexis McAdams contributed to this report.
Read the full article here