A private jet carrying eight people crashed and caught fire while taking off from Bangor International Airport in Maine on Sunday night, authorities said.
The Bombardier Challenger 600 went down around 7:45 p.m. local time on Sunday, Jan. 25, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, which announced the incident on X. The FAA said eight people were on board; officials later confirmed that seven people died and one person — a crew member — survived.
“Emergency services are responding to an incident involving an aircraft at BIA that occurred at approximately 7:45 p.m. on Sunday,” Bangor International Airport said in a statement. “The airport is closed and we ask that the public avoid the area.”
The aircraft had arrived in Maine from Texas. It was registered to a Houston-based law firm, according to CBS affiliate KHOU. Reuters reported that the registered owner is a company tied to a Houston address shared with the personal injury law firm Arnold & Itkin.
Government officials told Reuters there was a “significant fire after the crash.” The National Transportation Safety Board also said the plane experienced a post-crash fire.
The crash happened as snow began falling at the airport amid poor weather in the region, Reuters and KHOU reported. It was not immediately clear whether weather contributed to the incident. KHOU reported that at the time of takeoff, the jet had at least a mile of visibility and the runway had full visibility.
Authorities said the plane came to rest upside down as emergency crews responded. The FAA said first responders remained on scene for hours and that an Emergency Operations Center had been established.
Flight disruptions followed the crash. The FAA urged passengers to contact their airlines for information about potential impacts to travel plans.
The FAA and NTSB are investigating. The NTSB said investigators were expected to arrive at the site and begin documenting the scene and examining the aircraft before it is moved to a secure facility for further evaluation.
The incident came as winter storms brought hazardous travel conditions to parts of Maine and much of the country over the weekend, according to local station WABI. Warnings were expected to remain in effect through Tuesday, Jan. 27.
The FAA did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment on Monday, Jan. 26.
