Small plane crashes in Boca Raton onto Tri-Rail tracks near I-95, shutting down traffic, police say

A small plane has crashed onto the Tri-Rail tracks in Boca Raton near Interstate 95 and shutting down traffic on Friday, police said.

Boca Raton Police shared on X that North Military Trail is closed between Northwest 19th Street and Butts Road due to a “small aircraft crash.”

The I-95 overpass at Glades Road is also closed in both east- and westbound directions, and police are asking everyone to avoid the area.

Chopper 4 is over the scene, where debris from the plane crash was seen covering the Tri-Rail tracks with several emergency vehicles surrounding the crash site and what appears to be fire retardant splattered across the ground.

A charred car wedged up alongside a nearby tree was also seen near the crash site but it is unconfirmed at this time how many people might have been involved in the crash.

A public information officer for the Tri-Rail told CBS News Miami that train traffic and service have been suspended in the area at this time and are setting up a bus bridge between the Deerfield Beach and Boca Raton stations for rail commuters.

Aviation expert Willard Shepard told CBS News Miami that a witness saw the plane take off from the nearby airport and appeared to have “some trouble” and tried to return to the airfield before the crash.

“Obviously, something very catastrophic happened and the plane went down out there [Friday],” he said.

Shepard said investigators will be looking at details and circumstances surrounding the crash to determine its cause.

Another witness told CBS News Miami’s crew on the scene that he was talking to a client at his corporate office when he saw the plane appear to almost skim the roof of a nearby building before dropping out of sight.

“I just saw it come down and basically just drop below the tree line,” he said.

The witness continued, saying that there was a “loud boom” right after the plane dropped below the treeline: “The windows shook and then you saw basically a mushroom cloud of smoke and fire.”

He added that his concern was immediate when he saw the plane fly by because he thought it was going to crash into his office building.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.