New Dashcam Footage Shows Moment of Impact in Philly Plane Crash

Authorities are still piecing together what caused a small plane to crash into a residential neighborhood in North Philadelphia on Friday, Jan. 31, tragically killing all six people aboard. There has been no shortage of footage of the fiery crash that has made its way online, but newly-surfaced dashcam footage may provide the clearest vantage point yet.

According to the New York Post, the footage was taken by local resident Michael Hitchner, who was reportedly driving with his wife and mother when the small aircraft plummeted to the earth. Although the impact occurred just out of frame, the explosion lit up the sky, as debris quickly rained down on their car.

The vehicle's occupants could be heard shouting in terror, follow by a woman's voice frantically stating that she was calling 911.

The Learjet 55 air ambulance jet had been carrying an 11-year-old girl, Valentina Guzman Murillo, who had just received treatment for a life-threatening illness at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia. Also on board was the girl's mother, Lizeth Murillo Ozuna, 31; the pilot, Captain Alan Alejandro Montoya Perales; co-pilot Josue de Jesus Juarez Juarez; Dr. Raul Meza Arredondo; and a paramedic, Rodrigo Lopez Padilla.

The plane, which had just taken off from the nearby Northeast Philadelphia Airport less than a minute before impact, was bound for Mexico following a stopover in Missouri.

In addition to the six people aboard, who were all Mexican nationals, a seventh person inside a vehicle was killed on the ground, while two dozen others were injured. Given that several homes and businesses were also damaged or blown up in the explosion, it's no small miracle that the number of casualties wasn't higher.