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Plane crash scatters fiery wreckage across San Diego suburb

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Posted at 7:20 AM, Dec 28, 2021
and last updated 2021-12-28 15:50:29-05

EL CAJON, Calif. — A plane crash late Monday in El Cajon, a suburb of San Diego, left a trail of fiery wreckage scattered in front of homes and hundreds of residents without power.

The crash was reported just after 7 p.m. local time near the intersection of the 1200 block of Pepper Drive and N. Mollison Ave. in El Cajon, according to San Diego Sheriff's Department (SDSO).

According to SDSO, the plane that crashed was a Learjet scheduled to land at Gillespie Field in El Cajon, though it was unclear where it was coming from or how many people may have been on board.

The Lakeside Fire District, which responded to the scene, could not locate any potential victims in the crash, SDSO said. LFD added that no injuries were reported by residents or anyone on the ground.

LFD said that the crash threw debris across Pepper Drive. At least one home and one vehicle were damaged by debris.

Video from the scene showed a trail of flames along the street in the neighborhood.

San Diego Gas & Electric confirmed that power lines were down in the area due to the crash. According to the agency's outage map, the downed lines impacted more than 600 customers in the area. As of 6 a.m. local time Tuesday, nearly 250 customers were still without service.

The American Red Cross was scheduled to arrive Tuesday and help residents still impacted by the power outage.

While rain was reported in the county during the crash, it wasn't clear if the weather was a factor.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are handling the investigation. The agencies ask anyone with photos or video of the crash to email them to witness@ntsb.gov.

The crash comes more than two months after a plane crashed in a nearby neighborhood in Santee, California, killing two people. That crash occurred just miles south of Monday's crash in El Cajon.