All nine people aboard a private jet were killed when it crashed in a residential area of Florida’s Palm Beach County on Sunday, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.

The Learjet 60 went down near Cresthaven in South Florida at 12:50 pm (1750 GMT), erupting in a fireball, according to the Independent, UK.

The business jet was bound for the Bahamas and had departed from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas, the report said.

“Today’s plane crash in Palm Beach County, Florida is a horrific tragedy,” Duffy wrote. He said the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation were closely monitoring the crash and would share updates.

It was not immediately clear whether anyone on the ground was injured, or what caused the crash. It was also unclear whether any homes were damaged.

Teams from the National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA were headed to the site, near Military Trail and 10th Avenue North.

Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, said the aircraft was privately owned, with tail number N722BD. He said he could not yet provide details on who was onboard. “This is definitely a tragedy,” he said.

Video filmed by witnesses from inside their cars showed the aircraft nose-diving from the sky and exploding on a major road, inches from passing cars, the report said.

The crash left a large crater in the pavement, with flames rising near a roadside utility pole and black smoke pouring from the hole. Bystanders expressed shock that the jet came down just feet from homes.

The site is roughly eight miles (13 km) from US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Trump was in Iowa for a midterm election rally at the time.

Source: The Independent, UK