Two people die as small plane crashes into California neighbourhood
Wreckage could be seen between two homes.
A small plane has crashed into a neighbourhood in Simi Valley, California, killing two people and a dog on board the aircraft and damaging two homes, authorities said.
Fire crews responded, and police cordoned off the streets, warning people to stay clear of the area.
Smoke could be seen billowing from the roof of one home in the Wood Ranch section of the community, which lies nearly 50 miles north-west of Los Angeles.
Wreckage could be seen between the two homes.
The Ventura County Fire Department confirmed that residents were inside at the time but said they evacuated with no reported injuries. Both homes sustained structural damage and were impacted by the fire, authorities said.
About 40 firefighters attended the scene.
Officials initially reported one death. Later, the Simi Valley Police Department said the pilot, a passenger and a dog in the plane died.
As of Sunday, authorities had not released any information about the occupants of the single-engine Van’s RV-10, which is a popular home-built plane sold in kit form. They also did not say what might have caused the crash.
The plane crashed into the back garden and dining room of Arman Hovakemian’s home. Mr Hovakemian told the Los Angeles Times that he was doing work in the garden when he noticed the plane above, circling lower and lower in the hillside neighbourhood.
He ran inside to get his wife, Armineh, and their Pomeranian dog, Koko, and they fled the property. A loud bang followed and the fuselage landed where he had been standing just moments before, he said.
“I’m numb. It hasn’t sunk in yet,” Mr Hovakemian said. “We’re fortunate we were able to get out.”
In security video recorded by a neighbour that was viewed by the Times, the plane can be heard circling the neighbourhood for nearly three minutes and flying close to homes at points. In another video, the plane can be seen shooting straight up into the clouds then dropping down again.
An investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was also at the scene on Saturday.
NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said once the wreckage of the plane is documented, it will be moved to a secure facility for further evaluation.
Investigators will comb through the plane’s maintenance records, weather forecasts, recordings of any air traffic control communications, witness statements, the pilot’s background and any surveillance video that might have captured the aircraft.
In January another Van’s RV-10 crashed into a warehouse in Fullerton, which is south-east of Los Angeles, while trying to make an emergency landing, killing the pilot and his teenage daughter and injuring 19 people in the building.
A preliminary report issued by the NTSB said that plane appeared to have had a door ajar during the flight.
