A small plane has crashed near the town of Corona, in the state of California, local police and fire departments said on Wednesday.
The authorities later said there were four fatalities resulting from the accident.
Today about 12:11 P.M. The Corona Fire Department and Corona Police officers responded to the Corona Airport regarding a airplane crash. Upon arrival personnel located one plane on fire in the brush. Our fire personnel are working on extinguishing aircraft and brush.
— Corona Police Dept. #CoronaPD (@CoronaPD) January 22, 2020
The fire from the crash also extended into the nearby vegetation, the fire department said, adding that the 1/4 acre brush fire was contained.
The accident occurred near the Corona Municipal Airport, which has since been closed.
An incident involving a plane crash is being conducted at the Corona Airport. @coronafiredept and @coronapd are on scene.
— Corona Fire Dept #CoronaFire (@CoronaFireDept) January 22, 2020
The airport is closed
3-4 occupants in the plane
Approximately 80 gallons of fuel
Extending into vegetation pic.twitter.com/rXMUHbz4K2
Dorothe Voll, a pilot who witnessed the crash, said that she saw the plane smash into the fence and burst into flames, according to the Press-Enterprise news outlet.
“He [the pilot] didn't pull back and he was too fast at the end of the runway, and then he flipped and everybody was running and it started on fire. Then you had two explosions. … We brought over fire extinguishers but it was all engulfed", Voll said.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will be investigating the accident.
