All six passengers have been killed on a medical plane that crashed in a Philadelphia neighbourhood on Friday night, including a mother and her daughter, according to the mayor's office
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker adds that "many people on the ground" were injured as homes and fires in the areas were ablaze in the aftermath
The medical transport plane was taking the girl - who had been receiving care in the US for a life-threatening condition - back to Tijuana, Mexico. Four crew members were also on board
Flight logs show the plane was in the air "for only a minute before it crashed"
In an audio recording obtained by CBS News, the BBC's US partner, an air traffic controller can be heard saying they're "not exactly sure what happened"
Police respond to fiery scene after small plane crashes in Philadelphia
Image source, Getty ImagesWe're now hearing that the news conference has been delayed.
So we'll bring you an important message that Philadelphia's mayor had for city residents when she spoke last night:
"If you see debris, call 911, don't touch anything," Cherelle Parker said.
The exclusion zone around the crash site is large, however there could still be debris found further out.
City officials will be holding a news conference shortly to give an update on the plane crash.
We'll bring you the latest lines from it - stick with us.
US football team, the Philadelphia Eagles, has put out a statement saying they are "heartbroken" by the "tragic loss of life" after the plane crash.
"We extend our condolences to the victims and loved ones they leave behind. We are grateful to the first responders for their heroic actions at the scene," the organisation posted on X.
Image source, @Eagles
Image source, Getty ImagesVideos of the crash show the plane coming down quickly and sparking a huge fireball.
Witnesses described shrapnel damaging cars and sending burning debris into the streets. Photos of the aftermath show burning, mangled cars.
One man who spoke with CBS, the BBC's US partner, said he was driving when he heard a whirring sound and then a loud explosion.
"Everyone just started screaming," he said.
"I saw blinking lights coming from the sky. And I just saw them going down," a 10-year-old boy told CBS on his way home from hockey practice. "It was really scary."
One witness told local media that the explosion "lit up the whole sky".
"I just saw a plane basically hit the building and it exploded. The sky lit up and I pulled over and basically, it was just real bad around here," the witness told WPVI-TV, external, describing the crash as feeling like an earthquake.
Ryan Tian, 23, told The Philadelphia Inquirer, external that he was getting dinner when he saw a "massive fireball" that turned the sky orange.
"I thought we were getting attacked by something," he said.
The Mexican consulate in Philadelphia says it has been in touch with the families of the people who died in the crash.
In a post on X, it adds that "the necessary consular assistance is being provided and work is being done with the authorities to clarify what happened."
As we've been reporting, the patient on board this medical flight was a Mexican girl.
She had been treated at Shriners Children's Hospital in Philadelphia, spokesperson Mel Bower tells CBS News.
Her treatment had ended and she was on her way home to Tijuana when the plane crashed, Bower adds.
"It's extremely hard and extremely difficult, those that were involved directly in her care were very aware that she was going to be traveling home and there had actually been a send off for her today."
He says the hospital community at Shriners has been impacted very deeply by this.
When asked if she enjoyed the end-of-treatment celebration earlier on Friday, Bower says he is "certain that she did".
"Our staff – they work so hard at bringing joy and laughter and excitement into all parts of the clinical aspect. Our patients don't look at it as going to the hospital. They go to a place where they have fun and have enjoyment."
Here's more from the statement we just received from Philadelphia Mayor, Cherelle Parker:
"A devastating plane crash occurred in Northeast Philadelphia near Roosevelt Mall at Cottman and Bustleton Avenues on Friday evening, January 31, 2025, at approximately 6:10 pm.
"A private Learjet 55 – a medical transportation jet – departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport with two passengers, a mother and daughter, and four crew members were killed in the tragic crash."
It adds that flight logs show the plane was in the air "for only a minute before it crashed."
"Many people on the ground – in parking lots, on streets, in cars and homes in the area – were injured," the statement reads, but "the number of injured is yet to be released."
It says that some were taken to Temple University Hospital's Jeanes Campus, but there could be more in other hospitals.
All six people on board the plane that crashed in Philadelphia last night were killed, a statement on behalf of Mayor Cherelle Parker says.
That includes a child and her mother, a doctor, paramedic, pilot and co-pilot.
CBS News, the BBC's US media partner, has obtained the Air Traffic Control audio.
Here's what air traffic controllers can be heard saying:
"We have a lost aircraft.
"We're not exactly sure what happened so we're trying to figure it out.
"For now, the field is going to be closed."
A different person replies:
"It looks like there might be an accident near Northeast Philly airport.
"They are closing the airport indefinitely."
Image source, Getty ImagesThe crash happened near the Roosevelt Mall, a three-storey shopping center in a densely populated part of Philadelphia, the fifth biggest city in the US.
The area where the crash occurred is filled with terraced housing and shops.
Certain road closures are still in place, and "may be lengthy", the city's Office of Emergency Management says.
The roads include:
A shelter for those impacted by the crash has been opened at Samuel Fels High School, local media is reporting.
The plane, a Learjet 55, crashed at around 18:30 local time (23:30 GMT) after departing from Northeast Philadelphia Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.
It crashed a short time later, less than four miles (6.4km) from the airport.
The FAA said in a statement that the flight was on its way to Springfield-Branson National Airport in Missouri, where it was stopping off before continuing to Mexico.
At first, the agency said two people were on the plane but later revised that to six.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are investigating.
As well as the six people that were on the plane, there were six people on the ground injured by this crash.
A spokesperson for Temple University Hospital's Jeanes Campus in Philadelphia said they had treated these six, according to US media.
Three of those were treated and released but the the condition of the other three is still unknown, the reports said.
As day begins to break in north-east Philadelphia, in the state of Pennsylvania, we are getting a clearer picture of how large the crash scene is.
Debris lies across several streets and on the roofs of some buildings. Cars are abandoned in the road, some are burnt-out.
Fire engines and police cars are guarding the site.
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Reuters
Image source, Pennsylvania Representative Jared SolomonWelcome to our coverage of the medical jet crash in the US city of Philadelphia, where homes and vehicles have been set on fire, and people were injured on the ground.
The plane had been on a medical transport mission, carrying a child patient and her mother, and four crew members.
The six people on the plane were Mexican, the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on X., external
It is unclear whether there are any survivors among those who were on the plane.
It is early Saturday morning in Philadelphia now. We'll be bringing you the latest updates from the scene as we get them.