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Subscribe to RSSAfter eyewitnesses came forward with accounts of an explosion and loss of power just prior to the crash of an F-18 fighter jet into an apartment building in Virginia, the Navy said a "catastrophic" system failure was the likely cause of the accident that injured four people. NBC's Thanh Truong and Jim Miklaszewski reports.
The people left homeless when an 12-ton F/A 18 Navy fighter jet crashed into their Virginia Beach apartment complex began receiving emergency relief money on Monday.
Navy officials earlier said in a statement that initial payments to the residents would begin at $2,300. Some residents told NBC affiliate WAVY-TV that they provided the Navy with banking information so money could be directly deposited into their bank accounts.
Five residents were injured when the jet from nearby Naval Air Station Oceana crashed into the Mayfair Mews Apartments on Friday. No one died in what Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessions and Navy Adm. John Harvey Jr., head called a Good Friday "miracle." Several buildings were destroyed and others partially damaged.
The Navy pilots safely ejected before the crash but also suffered injuries.
Fire officials have said that some 60 residents were without homes due to the crash. The Navy is paying for the residents to stay in hotels while they make arrangements to find a new place to say, WAVY reported on its website.
Over the weekend, residents were given limited access to safe areas of the apartment complex to retrieve their belongings. They were allowed to pick their vehicles on Monday morning.
"We are committed to doing the right thing to address the needs of these families, who through no fault of their own have endured an incredible hardship," Reuters quoted Rear Adm. Tim Alexander, commander of the Navy's Mid-Atlantic region, as saying.
Read WAVY.com for more news on the Navy jet crash
The Navy has also established a call center to assist residents affected by the crash.
According to the Navy, the F/A 18 sustained a "catastrophic mechanical malfunction" during a training flight. The case is still under investigation.
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Wow, this is refreshing - taking responsibility and making sure these people are taken care of now.
Even better no one was killed on the ground.
It's going to be interesting to see what actually caused this crash because it obviously happened very fast and was a major catastrophe for the aircraft.
Navy Federal Credit Union...lol. Just kidding.. Ohh RAA Navy...way to do the right thing!
Gee, I lose my house because of the navy. They give me a whopping $2,300.00. That's heartwarming and refreshing. They should start these folks with at least $23,000.00. That would mean something.
Hey John C why don't you read the article before making lame comments. This is an initial emergency payment to the people displaced. These people wound up with no clothes etc to change into and are currently in hotel rooms paid for by the U.S. Navy.
I commend the Naval Commander at that base for the speed in which he is getting money to people and cutting the red tape, I also commend the Naval pilots who had the presence of mind to dump fuel which averted a much large catastrophic disaster.
Luckily they didn't hand this off to FEMA to help them.
I think the Navy is acting as quickly as they can under the circumstances and quickly handing each person $2300. is a good enough start to help them with the immediate needs such as clothing and eating out expenses. I would gather that all of the folks affected are just so happy to be alive! When you see the damage it is really amazing that nobody was killed.
Joe...When a black person kills a white person, he is usually arrested.
The victim, Trayvon, is being put on trial, when he didn't have a gun, didn't follow anyone, was where he should have been and basically was carrying a bag of candy, an ice tea and talking on the phone with his girlfriend.
In Trayvon's case, Zimmerman wasn't even given a test to see if he had been drinking. This law in Florida is a bad one, and the police really didn't do all that they could have to document what happened, in my opinion.
Hey, its not my fault. Maybe he reached for his skittles too quick and was shot. Besides, this is the wrong thread.
I'm am a loss for words here. At least you found him Joe. Make sure he takes his Alzheimer's meds would you?