Seven people are dead, including one in a car on the ground, after a twin-engine Medevac jet carrying a child patient and her mother crashed in a neighborhood in northeast Philadelphia. The child patient and her mother were among those on board, with the remaining five victims including two crew members and three bystanders.
The plane, a Bell 407 helicopter, crashed on a quiet street in the Bustleton neighborhood shortly after takeoff from nearby Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital, where the child patient had been receiving treatment. The exact cause of the crash is still under investigation, but local officials have suggested that pilot error may have played a role.
A significant radius of debris from the crash site was scattered across the surrounding area, with wreckage stretching more than a block from the impact site. Witnesses described the scene as “horrific,” with buildings damaged and power lines downed. Emergency responders rushed to the scene, where they found victims ranging in age from a toddler to adults.
The crash is the latest in a string of high-profile aviation incidents in the United States in recent years, prompting renewed calls for improved safety regulations and training standards.