Various Cubans living in a mobile home community in Palm Beach County, Florida, shared videos on social media showing remnants of the Learjet 60 that crashed near their homes this Sunday, in an accident that left nine people dead.
The recordings, shared on X by user Mayra, show metallic fragments of the aircraft scattered throughout the residential area, some next to parked vehicles and others among the trees and houses.
In one of the videos, a Cuban walks around his house while pointing out the items he comes across.
The number of fragments scattered throughout the neighborhood gives an idea of the violence of the impact, which occurred close to the homes.
“Look, that’s a part of an airplane, look. Look, it’s a part of a small airplane, look. Look at the other one here. And over there, there are parts of a small airplane scattered on the ground too, right?”, the man commented as he recorded.
At another moment, he stopped in front of an object he identified as a possible piece of the aircraft, which, as he explained, fell very close to his car.
“Look at the pieces here, look. That's a plane, look, from a small aircraft, look. Look, a valve, I don't know what, this that fell right by my car,” he described.
The images showed how the wreckage of the aircraft reached areas typically used by residents, who found fragments of the plane near their own homes.
A second video shows other consequences of the accident
A second recording shared by the same account captures particularly sensitive images of the aftermath of the disaster.
The publication refers to the possible discovery of human remains in the vicinity of the area where the aircraft crashed.
The accident resulted in the deaths of the nine individuals aboard the Learjet 60, as confirmed by the United States Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy. Authorities had not officially disclosed the identities of the victims in the initial reports.
WARNING: SENSITIVE CONTENT. The following video may contain explicit and disturbing images related to the plane crash.
The impact left a huge crater and forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents
The Learjet 60, identified by the registration N722BD, crashed at approximately 12:51 p.m. on Sunday, November 1, near Military Trail, in the Greenacres area of Palm Beach County.
The aircraft fell near a mobile home community. The impact left a huge crater next to the road, debris scattered around, and damage to several nearby houses.
Firefighters, agents from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, and other emergency services responded to the scene to manage the situation and secure the perimeter.
The authorities closed Military Trail while emergency operations were underway and the investigation into the accident began.
About 600 residents from the community were evacuated to shelters set up by county authorities.
The governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, described the incident as a catastrophic plane crash.
"It was a cataclysmic air accident. It looked like a missile falling. It left a large crater beside the road," he stated, referring to the violence of the impact.
The proximity of the impact site to the houses and a busy road heightened the danger for the residents, who found fragments of the aircraft in various places throughout the community.
The last minutes of the Learjet 60 before crashing
The private jet had taken off from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas, heading to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.
During the journey, the crew informed air traffic control that they were encountering adverse weather conditions, with moderate turbulence and icing.
According to the recordings of the air communications, the pilot initially reported that the ice accumulation was light and manageable, although she also described moderate turbulence.
He subsequently requested authorization to climb to 37,000 feet. The controller approved the maneuver, but shortly thereafter, the situation deteriorated rapidly.
The crew began reporting an extremely rapid loss of altitude and issued emergency calls.
“We are descending 8,000... mayday, mayday... we are descending 10,000 feet per minute,” the pilot communicated.
Seconds later, it was reported that the plane was in a state of excessive speed and was descending at about 20,000 feet per minute.
According to data from Flightradar24, the aircraft recorded a descent rate of over 32,000 feet per minute and lost approximately 26,700 feet of altitude in just 70 seconds before its tracking signal disappeared.
Although weather conditions and ice formation are among the elements that investigators will need to examine, it has not yet been officially determined what caused the loss of control of the aircraft.
The NTSB is investigating the causes of the accident
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) of the United States has taken over the investigation of the incident, with the support of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The investigators were sent to the site to examine the wreckage of the aircraft, reconstruct its last movements, and analyze the communications between the crew and air traffic controllers.
The NTSB announced a press conference in West Palm Beach for this Monday, aimed at providing preliminary information about the accident and the ongoing investigation efforts.
The Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy, described the incident as a "horrible tragedy" and confirmed the death of the nine people who were on board.
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