Small plane crash in Boca Raton kills 3 and sparks highway shutdown

The crash occurred just after 10 a.m. when a twin-engine Cessna 310R, built in 1977, went down near a highway overpass shortly after departing from Boca Raton Airport.

"The three people who died were all on board the aircraft," confirmed Michael LaSalle, assistant chief with the Boca Raton Fire Rescue. The plane, bound for Tallahassee, had only been airborne for a few minutes before it plummeted.

A fourth person, who happened to be driving nearby, suffered non-life-threatening injuries after driving through the fiery aftermath. "He drove through the fireball and struck a tree," LaSalle said.

The pilot had reported mechanical issues moments before the crash, prompting a federal investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Chaos in the sky followed by destruction on the ground

Flight data from Flightradar24 showed the plane flying erratically at extremely low altitude — around 200 feet — zigzagging across the area just before the crash.

"It was all over the place," said Lorenzo Echeverria, a local pilot and instructor. "Even someone with a special flight permit wouldn’t be able to do that type of thing."

The crash scattered debris across railroad tracks beneath the overpass, affecting Tri-Rail service between Deerfield Beach and Boca Raton.

Wreckage scattered across train tracks under I-95 overpass (Photo: https://x.com/?lang=uk)

While the airport was briefly shut down, it resumed normal operations by noon. Authorities are continuing to identify the victims and determine the cause.

In March, a similar tragedy occurred in Minnesota, where a small private plane crashed into a house and caused a massive fire, reportedly claiming the life of US Bank executive Terry Dolan.