Four people were killed after a small plane crashed near an airport in Visalia, California, within moments of the plane leaving the airport.
Emergency crews in Visalia responded to a call after 6:30 p.m on Saturday about a plane going down near the local airport. It took first responders some time to locate the wreckage due to fog in the area.
“It was dark. At the time, it was much foggier,” Visalia Police Sgt. Jesse Cox told the Visalia Times-Delta. “We circulated the area with personnel until we found it (the wreckage).” The deputies found a single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza that crashed moments after departing the airport.
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Ambulances and firefighters arrived at the scene soon after the wreckage was discovered, police officials report. Four victims were found, although their identities have not been released as of Sunday morning.
The National Transportation Safety Board said Sunday that it is investigating the crash, reports the outlet. The Federal Aviation Administration is also expected to arrive Sunday to investigate the incident.
A single-engine plane with the tail number N7933M left the Visalia airport at 6:37 p.m., according to the Visalia Times-Delta. The plane was registered to David Chelini out of Sacramento.
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Details surrounding the crash are not expected to be released for two weeks due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, officials say.
The Visalia crash is not the first in California this year. A small plane crashed in Santee, California, in October, destroying at least two homes and killing two people. The plane killed two and injured two more after slamming into a UPS truck and two different houses.
