Plane crashes into river in New York

A US Airways plane has crashed into the Hudson River in New York, emergency services said.

Passengers were seen fleeing for safety in the freezing water.

New York City firefighters were responding to the accident.

It was not immediately clear if there were any casualties.

“I just thought ’Why is it so low?’ And, splash, it hit the water,” said witness Barbara Sambriski.

The plane was submerged up to the windows, and rescue crews had opened the door and were pulling passengers in yellow lifevests from it.

Several boats surrounded the aircraft, which appeared to be slowly sinking.

“I saw what appeared to be a tail fin of a plane sticking out of the water,” said Erica Schietinger, whose office windows at Chelsea Piers look out over the Hudson.

“All the boats have sort of circled the area... I can’t tell what’s what at this point.”