Three people died after a small plane crashed in the Lake Elsinore area Sunday morning, according to Cal Fire/Riverside Fire spokeswoman Jennifer Fuhrman.
The incident occurred around 9:21 a.m. in the 32000 Block of Ortega Highway (map), according to a Riverside County Fire Department incident page.
The pilot “circled around, he was really low, just cleared the power lines,” said Alan Scott, who witnessed the crash. “He tried to climb, he was losing power, and he just dove into that mountain.”
The plane caused a small vegetation fire that was contained to one tenth of an acre, the page reported.
It was not immediately clear if there were other people in the plane, but Riverside County reported no additional injuries.
California Highway Patrol, the Federal Aviation Administration, Cal Fire, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and Fire Department officials, and hazmat units were all at the scene.
About 69 firefighters, three helicopters and one ground ambulance reported to the incident, the Riverside reported.
KTLA’s Tim Dechant and John A. Moreno contributed to this report.