Two killed after small ‘home built’ aircraft crashes into Southern California furniture warehouse

By JAMES GORDON FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

Published: | Updated:

At least two people were killed at least 18 injured when a small homemade plane collided into the rooftop of a furniture warehouse in Southern California on Thursday.

The plane came down close to Fullerton Municipal Airport, resulting in the evacuation of more than 100 people from inside the warehouse of a furniture manufacturing company in the Orange County city of Fullerton.

‘People are just shaken over the situation,’ witness Mark Anderson told NBC4. ‘It was just a large boom, and then one of the people went out and said, “Oh my gosh, the building’s on fire.”‘ 

Police and fire authorities arrived on scene at the warehouse, which appeared to contain sewing machines and textile stock after receiving a report at 2:09pm PST about the crash.

The plane was a home-built Van’s Aircraft RV-10, a single-engine plane with seating for four people. 

Firefighters could be seen battling the blaze while evacuating hundreds from surrounding businesses.

The pilot looked to be making an attempt to return to the airport about a minute after takeoff, police said, although it was not clear how many people were onboard the plane. 

By 4:30pm, at least 15 individuals were hurt, nine have been taken to hospital while six were treated at the scene. 

Two people were killed when a small plane collided into the rooftop of a commercial building in Southern California on Thursday, close to Fullerton Municipal Airport

An enormous fireball erupted after a plane crashed through the roof of a furniture warehouse in Fullerton, California

Two people were killed when a small plane collided into the rooftop of a commercial building in Southern California on Thursday, police said. This photo was taken from nearby Fullerton airport

At 3:25pm Fullerton Police Dept. Lt. Tim Kandler said that the fire had been extinguished.

The pilot radioed into the control tower at the airfield saying the plane would need to make an emergency landing. 

A thick plume of black smoke could be seen from miles around including from nearby Fullerton Airport.

Video footage from KABC shows white smoke coming from the top of a large building. 

Witnesses said they heard loud explosion resulting in a large emergency response at Michael Nicholas Design Factory, a home goods store.

In video footage shot from above, a large hole in the building’s roof could be seen with no sign of any visible plane wreckage. 

Security camera footage from Rucci Forge, a wheel manufacturer across the street, shows a fiery explosion and a large plume of black smoke as the plane appeared to dive into the building tilted on its side.

Video from the Citizen App in the immediate moments after the crash saw fire trucks speeding toward the scene with firefighters assessing the situation from a nearby rooftop.

Thick smoke could be seen from nearby witnesses using the Citizen app

Smoke was seen billowing into the sky which could be seen for miles around

Two people were killed and at least 18 were injured during the crash on Thursday afternoon

A woman is carried on a stretcher near the site of a plane crash in Fullerton, California

Firefighters were seen on site tackling the blaze and assisting various other crews

Police and fire authorities arrived on scene and battled the blaze while evacuating surrounding businesses

The shocking ball of flames were captured on a doorbell camera close to the warehouse

A plume of thick black smoke rose into the air above the scene and was visible for miles 

Emergency vehicles are lined up near the site of the plane crash on Thursday

Firefighters stage outside a building where the plane crash occurred

🚨Breaking🚨

Tragic news out of Fullerton, California: A small plane has crashed into a building, killing the pilot and injuring over a dozen others.

This devastating incident highlights the importance of air safety and the incredible bravery of first responders rushing to the… pic.twitter.com/yEymt16HO4

— Devine (@ChiefDRP) January 3, 2025

Police urged drivers to avoid the area as several roads near the scene of the crash were closed. 

Information was not immediately available on the cause of the crash. 

The plane crashed near the Fullerton Municipal Airport, a general aviation airport in Orange County that is about 6 miles from Disneyland. It has one runway and one heliport. 

Metrolink, a regional train line, is nearby, and flanks a residential neighborhood and commercial warehouse buildings. 

Fullerton is a city of about 140,000 people some 25 miles southeast of Los Angeles.

Another four-seat plane crashed into a tree a half-mile from the airport last November while making an emergency landing right after it had taken off, the Orange County Register reported

Both people on board suffered moderate injuries.

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