A business jet with six people on board crashed on a highway in Laredo, Texas, and caught fire Tuesday night, authorities said, killing one person and causing chaos as people left their vehicles to frantically try to smash the cockpit window and free those inside.

Rescue Efforts

Drivers who came upon the burning plane, which was nearly sheared in half and tipped on its side, captured dramatic rescue scenes on video or rushed toward the aircraft on foot to help. Two people came running with a sledgehammer and shovel, which they used to strike the cockpit glass and try propping open the plane’s door.

The plane crashed on the Loop 20 highway near the Texas-Mexico border shortly after 10 p.m., said Jose Baeza, an investigator with the Laredo Police Department. It was unclear if the person who died was on the plane or the ground.

Dashcam footage posted on social media showed the aircraft careening down the highway, taking out a light post before coming to a stop. It came to a rest not far from the Laredo International Airport.

“It looked like part of a movie. I was in shock,” said Zayra Garza, an esthetician who was driving her co-workers home when she came upon the crash.

Investigation

No injuries on the ground were immediately reported, though five officers were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation. The plane was a Cessna Citation Latitude twin jet, according to information from FlightAware, an aviation tracking and data company. It departed from Los Cabos International Airport in Mexico at 6:19 p.m.

It’s not clear what caused the crash as it reached Laredo, about 140 miles southwest of San Antonio. Laredo International Airport Director Gilberto Sanchez told KGNS TV in Laredo that the plane experienced a mechanical failure. He provided no details.

Original reporting: Dallas TX News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.