A single-engine plane crashed into a commercial building near a small airport in Southern California on Thursday, killing at least two people, injuring 18 others and prompting hundreds to evacuate from the fiery explosion.
The aircraft appeared to strike a sprawling building on Raymer Avenue near the Fullerton Municipal Airport just after 2 p.m., roughly 25 miles southeast of Los Angeles, the authorities said. A furniture manufacturing company was listed at the address.
Injuries ranged from minor to severe, the police said. Ten people were taken to the hospital and eight were treated on scene, according to Kristy Wells, a spokeswoman for the Fullerton Police Department.
It was unclear how many people were on the plane, or if the two dead were onboard. Officials estimated that as many as 300 people were evacuated from the building.
The aircraft was a Van’s RV-10, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, which said it was investigating the crash with the National Transportation Safety Board.
Surveillance footage obtained from a nearby building by a local TV station showed the moment of impact, with the plane exploding in an enormous fireball as it struck the roof of the building. Smoke could be seen billowing from a large hole in the roof in separate aerial footage from local TV.
There have been frequent crashes involving small planes flying in and out of the Fullerton Municipal Airport over the years. In November, two people were injured when a plane taking off from the airport made an emergency landing and crashed into a tree just one street from the site of the collision on Thursday. The airport faced intense scrutiny after a plane trying to land there crashed into a townhouse complex in 1995, killing two people onboard and a third person inside the home.
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