A small passenger aircraft crashed shortly after taking off from Southend Airport in London on Sunday, sending a large fireball into the sky, The Independent reported.
According to initial information, the aircraft involved is believed to be a Beech B200 model, which was en route to Lelystad in the Netherlands at the time of the incident. Emergency services are at the scene and officers have evacuated the Rochford Hundred Golf Club and Westcliff Rugby Club due to its proximity to the incident.
Four flights scheduled to take off from the airport on Sunday afternoon have been cancelled, according to its website.
Essex police said it was at the scene of a “serious incident”. A statement from the force said: “We were alerted shortly before 4pm to reports of a collision involving one 12-metre plane.
“We are working with all emergency services at the scene now and that work will be ongoing for several hours.
Essex County fire and rescue service said four crews along with off-road vehicles attended the incident.
The East of England ambulance service said four ambulances and four hazardous area response team vehicles were at the scene in addition to an air ambulance.
David Burton-Sampson, the Labour MP for Southend West and Leigh, posted on X: “I am aware of an incident at Southend airport. Please keep away and allow the emergency services to do their work. My thoughts are with everyone involved.”
Police said they were evacuating the Rochford Hundred golf club and Westcliff rugby club as a precaution because of their proximity to the incident.
This is a developing story. Expect updates.
