A Cessna 310R, similar to one pictured in 1977, crashed in Boca Raton, Fla., on Friday. Photo by FlugKerl2/Wikimedia Commons
April 11 (UPI) — Three people aboard a small propeller plane died in a crash on a major road in Boca Raton, Fla., Friday morning, not far from the city’s airport, officials said.
One man driving in a car had minor injures.
The Cessna 310 crashed about 10:20 a.m. after departing the airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The crash was just west of Interstate 95 and east of Town Center at Boca Raton.
“The aircraft apparently had some mechanical issues and went down here on Military Trail,” Boca Raton Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Michael LaSalle said during a news conference. “Also there was a car on the ground.”
The man’s car was charred after hitting a tree, WPTV-TV reported.
“It’s non-life-threatening injuries. We treated him and sent him to the hospital,” LaSalle said. “He drove through, apparently, the fireball; this is unconfirmed.”
Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer said at the scene: “We can be grateful in tragic moments like this for the swift action of Boca Raton Fire Rescue Department and our Boca Raton Police Department who worked to minimize the harm and especially to the immediate needs from the fire.”
The Boca Raton Police Services Department confirmed the crash and road closures on Military Trail, not far from the state-owned Boca Raton Airport.
Tri-Rail train service also was impacted because of debris on the tracks.
The flight-tracking website Flightradar 24 reported the plane was a Cessna 310R headed from Boca Raton to Tallahassee.
The victims have not been identified.
The website’s tracking shows the plane doing several loops in the area shortly after taking off and before the crash.
Witnesses reported seeing the plane flying low before it began circling, presumably in an attempt to return. Officials have not confirmed how many people were on board.
“I saw the plane, basically, turn, come back, and I heard it and saw it go over our building,” Dillon Smith, who was at his office, told WPBF-TV.
He said couldn’t see the plane and then “came back — it was looking like maybe it was going toward the airport.”
The Cessna 310R is a low-wing, dual-engine propeller aircraft capable of carrying between four and six people.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.