Business jet crashes into Ohio building, killing at least nine

Latest Update Nine people have died after a private jet crashed into a house in the US state of Ohio.

The plane came down on approach to an airport near the city of Akron.

It is believed the aircraft clipped electrical wires, before ploughing into the house and bursting into flames.

The house also went on fire but no one was injured on the ground.

Update 6am

A small business jet crashed into an apartment building in Ohio, killing at least two people on board.

Investigators were trying to determine how many people were on the 10-seater Hawker H25 jet, but they confirmed two deaths, said Lieutenant Sierjie Lash, an Akron fire department spokeswoman.

No-one was inside the small brick apartment building or a neighbouring home that caught fire, she said.

The jet clipped a utility wire on the way down and burst into flames and disintegrated after impact, Ohio State Highway Patrol Lieutenant Bill Haymaker said.

The plane then hit an embankment beyond the apartment building, causing a nearby house to also burn, he said. There were no known injuries on the ground.

Witnesses reported hearing explosions when the plane hit.

“I heard a big bang, and my couch shook twice,” said Carrie Willis.

The front of the apartment building was destroyed.

Jesse Moon told WEWS-TV that he was close by when the plane went down in east Akron, and he ran over to the area.

“Everything was gone,” he said. “It looked like a bomb exploded.”

Lieutenant Bill Haymaker from its State Highway Patrol explains what happened.

“It struck one house and then continued on into an embankment just behind that house,” Mr Haymaker said.

“The plane became engulfed in flames which ignited the residence it initially struck and then actually continued on into another house that was behind that house.”