A young pediatric patient who had just undergone life-saving medical treatment in the US was finally heading home to Mexico on the Learjet 55 air ambulance that crashed in a fiery explosion in northeast Philadelphia on Friday night.
The aircraft, operated by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, was bound for Tijuana, Mexico with a stop at Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri.
The plane had just taken off from Northeast Philadelphia Airport when it plummeted into a densely populated neighborhood killing six.
The crash site, near Cottman Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard, quickly became engulfed in flames, with buildings and vehicles caught in the inferno.
Shai Gold, a spokesman for Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, confirmed the heartbreaking news, stating how the young girl had fought tirelessly to survive her illness.
‘She did her course of care. She was going home,’ Gold said. ‘She fought quite a lot to survive, and unfortunately, this tragedy on the way home.’
On board the ill-fated flight were the girl’s mother, a pilot, a co-pilot, a doctor, and a paramedic, each of whom had dedicated themselves to ensuring the child’s safe return. But in a cruel twist of fate, the journey ended in disaster.
The Learjet 55, often used for critical medical transport, is a lifeline for patients like the young girl who was onboard.
A young pediatric patient who had just undergone life-saving medical treatment in the U.S. was onboard the Learjet 55 air ambulance that crashed in a fiery explosion in northeast Philadelphia
The plane had just taken off from Northeast Philadelphia Airport when it plummeted into a densely populated neighborhood killing six
Thick black smoke could be seen billowing into the air following the fiery crash
With sponsorship from a third party charity, the girls had traveled to the U.S. for urgent medical care that had given her another chance at life.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash.
The devastation was immediate, with first responders racing to the scene near Roosevelt Mall as plumes of smoke filled the evening sky.
The Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management declared a ‘major incident’ and urged residents to avoid the area as firefighters battled the intense flames.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro expressed his condolences on social media, assuring the public that all necessary resources were being deployed.
‘We are offering all resources as emergency services respond to the small private plane crash in Northeast Philly,’ he wrote. ‘We’ll continue to provide updates as more information is available.’
The crash comes just days after another catastrophic air disaster, in which a passenger jet and military helicopter collided off Washington’s Reagan National Airport, killing 67 people – the deadliest aviation accident in the United States in nearly 25 years.
