Philadelphia boy praised as hero for shielding sister during plane crash

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A 10-year-old boy who was hospitalized following the Philadelphia medical jet crash is being hailed as a hero for saving his sister’s life.

Andre Howard III, who goes by “Trey” according to FOX 29, was on an after-school doughnut run with his dad and sister Friday in the area of the disaster that left a large, gaping crater on Cottman Avenue on the city’s northeast side. 

Trey’s dad told local media outlets that as debris from the crash fell to the ground, the grade schooler shielded his sister, likely saving her life.

“Heard what we thought was a car crash, but then you see a fury of fire in the air, then a bunch of debris shooting everywhere,” Trey’s dad told ABC 6 Action News. 

NUMBER INJURED FOLLOWING PHILADELPHIA PLANE CRASH INCREASES TO 24, SOME REMAIN HOSPITALIZED

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  Andre Howard III, known as "Trey," saved his sister from falling debris after the Philadelphia plane crash on Jan. 31, 2025.  (Family provided to FOX 29)

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  Trey, 10, was getting doughnuts with his dad and sister when the Philadelphia plane crash occurred.  (Family provided to FOX 29)

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  Trey’s dad said he dove on top of his sister, most likely saving her life.  (Family provided to FOX 29)

“My son, who’s named after me, Andre Howard, tells his little sister, ‘Get down.’ And he grabs her. I hear the glass shatter. I turn around, there’s a piece of metal sticking out of my son’s head from the plane,” he continued.

Trey underwent emergency brain surgery as a result of his injury, but reports say he was last in stable condition at a children’s hospital.

MAN HIT IN HEAD BY DEBRIS FROM PHILADELPHIA PLANE CRASH THAT BROKE THROUGH DINER WINDOW

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  This image provided by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance shows Paramedic Rodrigo Lopez Padilla, a member of the Jet Rescue Air Ambulance team who died Friday, Jan. 31, 2025. (Jet Rescue Air Ambulance)

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  This image provided by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance shows Captain Alan Montoya Perales, left, and Co-Pilot Josue de Jesus Juarez Juarez, members of the Jet Rescue Air Ambulance team who died Friday, Jan. 31, 2025.  (Jet Rescue Air Ambulance)

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  This image provided by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance shows Dr. Raul Meza Arredondo, a member of the Jet Rescue Air Ambulance team who died Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, when their plane crashed shortly after takeoff from an airport in Philadelphia. (Jet Rescue Air Ambulance)

On Monday, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker said 24 people were injured as a result of the plane crash and four were still hospitalized. Two of them critical, two stable, she said.

Seven people died as a result of the crash; six Mexican nationals in the jet and a person in a car.

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Newly-appointed U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was in Philadelphia on Monday, where he said a preliminary report on the crash should be available “within 30 days” and the jet’s black box was on its way to Washington, D.C.