Authorities have said “multiple” people that were on board a private plane that crashed into a residential street in San Diego are dead.
The Cessna 550 aircraft crashed at about 3.45am near the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.
Photos posted online show the blaze erupt in a street just before 4am local time in the Murphy Canyon neighbourhood of the Californian city.
Assistant Fire Department Chief Dan Eddy said during a news conference that they will be investigating whether the plane hit a power line.
San Diego police and fire officials said the plane could hold eight to 10 people but they do not yet know how many were on board.
No one on the ground was injured, he said.
He earlier said: “We have jet fuel all over the place.
"Our main goal is to search all these homes and get everybody out right now."
He said "there is a direct hit to multiple homes" in the neighborhood and described "a gigantic debris field."
San Diego officials haven't released details about the plane that crashed but said it was a flight coming in from the Midwest.
Mr Eddy said it was very foggy at the time the private plane crashed.
"You could barely see in front of you," he said.
Neighbours told NBC7 they heard a “loud boom” before the fire erupted.
It was not known if there were any injuries or how many people were on board the aircraft.
Eddy said it was very foggy at the time the private plane crashed.
"You could barely see in front of you," he said.
The FAA said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation.
In October 2021, a twin-engine plane plowed into a San Diego suburb, killing the pilot and a UPS delivery driver on the ground and burning homes. It was preparing to land at the airport.
And in December 2008, a Marine Corps fighter jet slammed into a house in San Diego's University City neighborhood, causing an explosion that killed four people inside.
The Marine Corps blamed the crash on mechanical failure and human error.
