Private plane crashes in Greenacres and causes fire

A private plane crashed Sunday in Greenacres, Palm Beach County, Florida, causing an explosion followed by a fire. Nine people were aboard the aircraft, preliminarily identified as a Learjet 60. The accident occurred in a residential area near Cresthaven. The reported crash time was about 12:50 p.m., and the emergency activated local services.

Palm Beach County Fire Rescue said crews arrived at around 1:10 p.m. local time and described it as a large-scale incident. The explosion and fire followed the impact as units moved toward the area. Authorities are investigating it as an aviation incident. Response centered on the surroundings, where the crash damaged the roadway and a mobile home.

Reported damage included debris scattered across a road, a crater in the pavement and at least one destroyed mobile home. The aircraft fell inside a mobile-home park in Greenacres. Identification was preliminary: flight-tracking data associated it with a Learjet 60 bearing registration N722BD, a midsize twin-engine business jet.

The aircraft had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas for North Eleuthera in the Bahamas. That was the route before the Florida accident. The Federal Aviation Administration placed the crash point near Cresthaven, also in Palm Beach County. The plane was therefore flying between Texas and the Bahamas when it came down in Greenacres.

The emergency response included closure of Military Trail and activation of a hospital alert. The FAA cited Cresthaven as a nearby reference while crews addressed the fire and damage in the residential area. Authorities confirmed they are investigating the aviation incident. The response covered the fire and effects on the road and mobile-home park.