JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The story first unfolded on social media.
Mayor Lenny Curry issued a thread of tweets – announcing a commercial plane down on the river, calling it a developing situation and urging people to pray. He then tweeted that he heard from President Donald Trump about the accident and the White House pledged its support.
That initial tweet was followed by tweets from the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department.
Local media then responded and began tweeting from the scene.
One man tweeted that he’d been a passenger and called it the "scariest night of [his] life."
Another woman said her husband was on board the plane when it skidded into the river.
One Tweet showed the path of the flight.
NAS Jax also tweeted that -- tragically – the pets aboard the flight could not be safely retrieved at the time and remained aboard, their condition unknown.
Late Saturday morning, the NTSB tweeted about its arrival in Jacksonville to investigate the accident. NTSB scheduled a news conference for Saturday afternoon. First Coast News will carry it live.