San Diego small plane crash into military neighborhood leaves multiple people dead

A small plane crashed into a San Diego military housing neighborhood on Thursday morning, killing at least two people on the plane, officials confirmed. The San Diego Police Department said in a statement on X that at least two people were killed in the crash and eight others were injured. The crash also damaged around 10 structures in the neighborhood, police said, setting multiple homes and cars on fire. "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 said at a press conference on Thursday morning. Eddy said that all of the fatalities were on the plane and that the plane could have sat eight to ten people, including the pilot. As of Thursday afternoon, officials did not know how many people were on the plane when it crashed and do not know the identities of the two people confirmed dead. "We do believe we have multiple fatalities, but we’re going to have to go through and take our time and ensure that's exactly what we have," he said. The jet took off Wednesday night from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, just outside of New York City, and landed in Wichita, Kansas, on Thursday morning, according to flight data associated with the tail number posted on FlightAware. It stayed in Kansas for about an hour and was supposed to land at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport in San Diego later that morning. A federal source familiar with the matter confirmed the tail number of the plane with NBC News. The plane was a Cessna C550 made in 1985, according to data from the Federal Aviation Administration. Eddy said that there were not fatalities on the ground from the homes destroyed in the crash. "We had one of the best outcomes that I could possibly say that came from this," he said. "Because when I was coming on scene, I did not expect that same outcome as I got here." Multiple neighborhoods in the area were evacuated, he added, partly because of fuel spills caused by the crash. "We have jet fuel all over the place," he said. "We have hazmat on scene right now, and we’ve asked for more resources to come for that." Officials said that the homes affected were all military housing. U.S. Navy Captain Robert Healy told reporters that families evacuated "may be out of their homes for a while," adding that the Navy will ensure the families have intermittent housing if necessary. Describing the crash site to reporters, San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said that there was "jet fuel going down the street and everything on fire all at once." "It was pretty horrific to see," he said. Aerial footage of the crash site shows at least one residential structure destroyed and charred cars parked along the street. San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo said in a statement on X that "numerous homes were lost," but that "no more people are in harm’s way at this moment." "I pray for those who lost their lives and we will help those affected recover," he added. Video of the crash site shared with NBC News shows what appears to be a car fully engulfed in flames with police sirens in the background. Forrest Gallagher, who lives in the area and captured the imagery, said a "loud boom" woke him up out of a deep sleep. "I went outside to my neighbors out in the street and smelt a weird burning smell, like rubber/plastic smell," he said in a text message to NBC News. "I went outside to investigate and that’s when I saw the car on fire." Gallagher, a Marine Corps mechanic, added that he did not see "any plane wreckage" and that he was not evacuated. Jasmine, who lives in the area and asked that her last name not be published, told NBC affiliate KNSD that she helped her neighbor escape her home. “I screamed out to my son to grab the ladder, which we were able to throw over and help them climb over our fence,” she said. The assistant fire chief appeared to mention the incident to reporters, saying: "That’s the beauty of what I love in this neighborhood, too — military looking out for one another." In a statement on X, the San Diego Police Department urged people to avoid the area and said more information would be shared as it becomes available. The department added in a later statement that two local elementary schools were closed for the day. At the press conference, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria thanked first responders. "Every San Diegan expresses our appreciation to these heroes who got the job done this morning," he said. "Still a tragedy, and again, our hearts are with those who are impacted." "We'll continue to be here throughout this response effort to make sure, again, the families who are impacted, those who are not able to access their homes, are well supported until they're able to get back into their homes," Gloria added. The FAA said in a statement that it did not immediately know the number of passengers onboard.