All five people killed in the crash of an Amazon Prime Air aircraft at Miami International Airport on Sunday were in vehicles struck by the Boeing 767, the NTSB confirmed Monday.
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said two vehicles were hit – a Ford Econoline van owned by a cleaning company, and a Toyota compact SUV. There were seven people in the van, Homendy said; she did not say how many people were in the SUV.
The van was owned by Professional Ocean Service Corporation, a cleaning contractor for the airlines at Miami. The van was within the airport’s perimeter, while the SUV was outside of it, traveling on Northwest 67th Avenue.
Homendy also stated for the first time that two people, a pilot and co-pilot, were on board the 767. She declined to comment on their condition or health status when asked by a reporter.
The cargo airplane overran the runway at Miami around 2 p.m. local time on Sunday. It caught fire as it crashed about 1,300 feet beyond the runway, sending plumes of thick, dark smoke into the air.
Hundreds of Miami-Dade first responders rushed to the scene. Fire crews put out the smoking engines and helped the pilots exit the aircraft through the front cockpit windows. One person had to be extricated from a vehicle crushed beneath the 767.
In addition to the five dead, five people were injured, and three of them were in critical condition as of Sunday, according to Miami officials.
Homendy described the crash site as “utter devastation.” Debris littered the ground, she said, and swaths of fencing around the airport were ripped loose. The van was “torn apart,” she said.
The NTSB, FAA, and Miami authorities are now investigating the accident.
