A small plane on Thursday crashed through the window of a commercial manufacturing building in Southern California killing at least two people and injuring a further 18 others.
The crash, which occurred near Fullerton Municipal Airport, which is 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles in the early afternoon, caused significant damage to the building, with a large hole visible in the roof and smoke billowing out.
“There are two confirmed fatalities,” Fullerton police department confirmed on X.
Ten people were hospitalized with injuries, while eight others received treatment at the scene. the identities of the victims were still unknown, including whether they were in the plane or on the ground.
“We’re still investigating whether the victims were passengers or individuals inside the structure,” a police officer told KTLA.
Jerome Cruz, a worker at the building, recounted the moment of impact, describing the chaos that followed the crash.
“All we hear is like a loud noise, boom, and that’s it. Then we started running out,” he told CBS News.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) identified the aircraft as a single-engine Van’s RV-10, a small, four-seater model. The cause of the crash remains unknown, and the FAA has launched an investigation.
This crash comes after another aviation accident near Fullerton Airport in November, which left two people injured.