Mexican Navy medical plane crash in Texas kills five, including toddler

A two-year-old child was among at least five people killed after a Mexican Navy aircraft transporting medical patients crashed into the waters of Galveston Bay, Texas, on December 22, according to the US Coast Guard.

The death toll rose later that night as search and rescue teams continued operations west of the Galveston Causeway, where one passenger remains unaccounted for, an official from the Coast Guard’s Heartland sector told CNN.

The aircraft crashed near the base of the causeway, roughly 80.5 kilometres southeast of Houston. Two people were pulled from the water alive, although authorities have not released details about their conditions.

The Mexican Navy said the aircraft was carrying eight people, including four naval personnel and four civilians.

Galveston County Sheriff Jimmy Fullen said the plane was transporting burn patients, among them a two-year-old child who required emergency treatment for severe burns. The identities of those killed have not yet been released. 

Mexican and US emergency services are continuing joint search and recovery operations in the area.

By Jeyhun Aghazada