San Diego Plane Crash Victims Include Talent Agency Co-Founder

At least three people died, including employees from a music talent agency, after a small plane carrying six crashed in a San Diego military housing neighborhood on the morning of May 22, the music company said. The three victims who died were all employees at Sound Talent Group, including its co-founder Dave Shapiro, a company spokesperson told NBC News. It's not immediately clear who else was on board at the time of the crash. “We are devastated by the loss of our co-founder, colleagues and friends,” the company said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to their families and to everyone impacted by today’s tragedy.” Daniel Williams, the former drummer of metal band The Devil Wears Prada, was also among the victims, his father Larry Williams told TMZ. The band posted a photo of Williams on Instagram on Thursday, writing in the caption: "no words. We owe you everything. Love you forever." Williams appeared to post photos from the plane's cockpit on his Instagram story hours before the crash occurred. Authorities have not publicly named Williams as one of the victims of the crash. A Cessna 550 with six people on board crashed around 3:45 a.m. near Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport in California, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. In an update posted on X on Thursday afternoon, the San Diego Police Department said approximately 100 residents were evacuated and at least two people were confirmed dead and eight others injured. The plane damaged about 10 buildings in a military housing neighborhood north of San Diego when it crashed, police said. “I just walked it myself, and down the street itself, it looks like something from a movie,” San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Assistant Chief Dan Eddy told reporters on Thursday morning. Eddy said all of the fatalities were among the plane’s passengers. Ben McCarty, who has served in the military for 13 years, said on TODAY in an interview aired May 23 that the plane slammed into living room of his home. "I’ve seen a lot of scary things," McCarty said of his time in the military. "It’s the scariest thing that I think I’ll ever experience." McCarty, his wife Srujana and their children were able to escape their home with the help of their neighbors. Amid the evacuation, several pets were exposed to jet fuel. The San Diego Humane Society said it gave eight dogs and eight puppies decontamination baths. "These dogs will be with us for emergency boarding until their families can figure out next steps," the humane society said in a statement to NBC News. There had been dense fog at the time of the crash, and the plane’s pilot was heard communicating about the weather before the incident occurred, according to flight audio recordings. The plane took off from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey on the night of May 21, stopping to refuel in Witchita, Kansas, before continuing on to San Diego, according to flight tracking data. The National Transportation Safety Board said they will continue their investigation into the incident.