Authorities sifted through burned cars, damaged homes and charred debris Saturday to gather clues that might explain why an air ambulance exploded into a fiery ball as it crashed on a busy Philadelphia street, killing seven and leaving no survivors on board. The small plane carrying six people, including a child who had just undergone treatment at a hospital, crashed just after takeoff from the small Northeast Philadelphia Airport, creating what witnesses described as a massive fireball and a chaotic street scene that left houses on fire, businesses damaged and cars destroyed. Authorities couldn’t say why the jet crashed and Adam Thiel, the city’s managing director, said it could be days — or more — until authorities are able to fully count the number of dead and injured across a massive impact area spanning blocks in a densely populated residential area. Seven dead and 19 injured, although the casualty toll could go higher As of Saturday morning, officials said there were seven dead — six on the jet, one person on the ground — and 19 injured. The plane hit the ground just after 6 p.m., during a busy Friday evening dinner hour. Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said the plane was aloft for a very short period of time before it crashed. “All of sudden I heard like a ‘boom,’ and I thought it was a thunderstorm,” said Selkuc Koc, a waiter at the Four Seasons Diner on Cottman Avenue. “And I get up and look at the smoke and the fire, it was like a balloon, I thought it was a gas station blew up.” Spokespersons for hospitals treating the injured, Temple University Hospital-Jeanes and Jefferson Health, said most of the patients they saw had been treated and released by midday Saturday, but at least three were admitted and remain hospitalized. One patron of the Four Seasons Diner was hit and injured by a small, heavy metal object that flew through the window, Koc said. Crash scene extends for at least four city blocks The crash scene was at least four to six blocks, and authorities were working to assess the damage, including going house to house to inspect the dwellings in the area, Thiel said. It is “entirely possible” that there will be changes to the casualty figures, Thiel said. There are “a lot of unknowns” as to who was where on the streets of the neighborhood when the plane crashed. Of the six people on board the medical transport jet, one was a child who had just completed treatment at Shriners Children’s hospital, one was her mother and four were crew members, officials said. All victims on jet were from Mexico Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said all the victims were from Mexico. In a statement on the social media platform X, Sheinbaum said she mourned their deaths. “Consular authorities are in constant contact with the families; I’ve asked the Foreign Affairs Secretary to support whatever is needed. My solidarity with their loved ones and friends,” she said in a statement translated from Spanish. Of the casualties on the ground, Parker said one person who was in a car was killed and 19 others were injured. The child on the medical transport jet had just completed treatment at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia hospital. Hospital officials said that, because of […]