2 People and a Dog Dead After Plane Crashes into Southern California Neighborhood

• A small plane crashed into two occupied family homes, causing fires and significant damage to the properties, in Simi Valley, Calif., on Saturday, May 3
• Two people and a dog onboard the aircraft died in the crash, according to reports
• The cause of the crash has not been determined at this time

Two people have reportedly died after a small plane crashed into a Southern California neighborhood.

At around 1:50 p.m. local time on Saturday, May 3, a single-engine aircraft crashed into two homes in Simi Valley, causing a fire at both properties, the Ventura County Fire Department stated in a news release shared on Instagram. 

“VCFD was dispatched to a single-engine, fixed-wing aircraft that crashed into two single family homes with an active fire in the 200 block of High Meadow Street in Simi Valley. Firefighters began an aggressive fire attack and quickly knocked down the fire,” the VCFD said. 

“Both homes were occupied at the time, and firefighters assisted with evacuating residents,” they continued. “No injuries to residents or firefighters were reported. Both homes were impacted by fire and sustained structural damage.”

The pilot, a passenger and a dog onboard the plane died in the crash, the Simi Valley Police Department confirmed to ABC 7 Eyewitness News. 

The police initially said in a news release that one person in the aircraft died at the scene, then the VCFD reported that two passengers in the aircraft were “fatally injured in the accident.”

The plane had taken off from Lancaster to Camarillo before it took a turn at the Wood Ranch neighborhood, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, per ABC 7.

Footage posted by the fire department on X shows a house with smoke coming out of it after the fires were extinguished and emergency responders at the scene. 

“The fire has been knocked down and firefighters are working on overhaul and salvage operations …approx. 40 firefighters are on scene and we are in unified command with Simi Valley PD,” the VCFD wrote on X.

Arman Hovakemian, who lives in one of the homes hit by the plane, witnessed the crash. He said he saw the plane “flying low, almost on its side, spiraling toward the ground,”  before hitting the back of the house, ABC 7 reported. 

“I came in to the patio door to warn [my partner], and then I heard the bang, then I turned around, she was almost out,” Hovakemian said. “The hose was there, so I grabbed the hose because I saw the fire on the plane, and then I saw the fire on the house.”

“I kept the hose on the plane, and then it just exploded, so I dropped it and I said, ‘I need to kind of back away,’ because I could smell a lot of gas and fuel,” he recalled to the outlet. 

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Hazardous materials have been ruled out as the cause of the crash, per ABC 7.

Andrew Dowd with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department told the outlet, “There’s no apparent jet fuel …. [or] significant fuel spill … With this type of small, fixed-wing, single-engine aircraft, the determination was made that we didn’t have a significant hazardous materials risk.”

The Simi Valley Police, the Ventura County Medical Examiner, and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the incident. 

PEOPLE has reached out to the FAA, VCFD and Simi Valley Police for comment.

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