Small plane crashes into San Diego, California street; ‘more than one’ fatality

SAN DIEGO, California — A small plane crashed into a residential area of southern California in the middle of the night, police said Thursday, smashing into houses and setting multiple cars ablaze.

TV footage showed rows of cars burned to blackened shells and at least one house suffering major destruction in the San Diego neighborhood of low-rise homes.

The Federal Aviation Authority said a Cessna 550 crashed at around 3:45 a.m. local time. The neighborhood is close to the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport.

"There are more than one fatality that we found so far, but we're waiting to get the registered numbers that were on the plane itself," said Assistant Fire Department Chief Dan Eddy, adding that there were no reported deaths or serious injuries among people on the ground.

The aircraft can carry between eight and 10 passengers, he added.

A view shows a damaged house and vehicle at the crash scene, after a small civilian aircraft went down in a military neighborhood in San Diego, California, May 22, 2025. REUTERS/ Mike Blake

The San Diego Police Department said it was "responding to a plane crash" and evacuated three streets, while advising the public to call authorities if coming across debris or "smell jet fuel."

The Cessna airplane left a "gigantic debris field" and damaged multiple homes and parked cars, ABC News quoted the San Diego assistant fire chief as saying. — Agence France-Presse