With a sledgehammer and a shovel, volunteers raced to save passengers in Texas plane crash

Late Tuesday night in Laredo, Texas, a NetJets Cessna Citation Latitude crashed after reporting mechanical problems while en route from San José del Cabo to Austin. The fuselage split, the tail broke off, and the aircraft skimmed across a concrete barrier as flames and sparks erupted along the roadside. One person, Joshua Baer, was killed, and three teenage passengers and two pilots survived, as did a civilian in a truck struck by the plane. Motorists and first responders—including Ivan Franco, who retrieved a sledgehammer and fire extinguishers—rushed to help as occupants struggled to escape the burning cabin.

Federal Aviation Administration officials said the flight departed Tuesday evening from San José del Cabo and was bound for Austin when crews requested an emergency landing. NetJets said it is cooperating with authorities, and investigators are examining mechanical issues as a possible cause for the crash. The crash marked the third significant aviation accident in as many days in the United States, following a fatal B-52 crash at Edwards Air Force Base in California and a Missouri skydiving-plane crash.