15 in hospital after crash
Peninsula Hospital Centre in Rockaway said 15 people were currently being treated for injuries from the crash.
A hospital spokesman said none were thought to be serious, but stressed it was too early to get a complete picture of the extent of the injuries.
Witness Lillian Kogut, who lives near the crash site, said she saw pieces of debris fall from the plane before the main section came down.
‘‘I heard a loud noise so I looked out of my window and saw what looked life paper coming down.
‘‘Then I saw what a black cylinder, like a big can, come from the sky on fire.
‘‘Then the plane came down nose first.’’
She quickly evacuated her children from the house.
‘‘I thought it was a terrorist attack. Outside people were crying. There were people coming from the scene hysterical.
‘‘One woman said she had seen the wing come down and thought it was going to hit her. She was in shock.’’
Eyewitness Ethan Moses said he had seen the plane climbing in the sky after take-off.
‘‘It was in a climbing position and when I looked up I saw fire on the left side of the engine,’’ he said.
The wing appeared to separate from the rest of the plane, which veered to the left and then plunged into a nose dive, he said.
‘‘It was travelling to the left slightly and then it just nose dived straight down,’’ Mr Moses said, adding that fire spread on the ground, moving from house to house within seconds.
