A man in his mid-20s piloting a single-engine plane was taken to a trauma center with critical injuries after a fiery crash in Ventura County, authorities said.
The crash east of the Santa Paula airport was reported just before 12:30 a.m. Sunday, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.
No passengers were on board the small plane when it went down in an industrial area in the city of Santa Paula, sparking a fire, said Andy VanSciver, a firefighter and information officer for the fire department.
Several businesses are in the area where the plane crashed, but the fire was contained to the plane and no other injuries were reported, VanSciver said.
A photo posted by agency on X shows the nose of the plane and the propeller attached to a completely bare frame, apparently charred by the fire. A single wheel is visible near a pile of ash and debris.
Santa Paula Police Chief Don Aguilar told The Times on Sunday that the plane crashed in an open yard and disturbed stacked pipes that were being laid out. It came to rest next to a large metal garbage can, as seen in the picture.
Firefighters who responded to extinguish the fire and tend to the patient have left the scene, VanSciver said.
A video posted by the agency appears to show the pilot being taken to a waiting helicopter on a stretcher.
The identity and an update on the pilot’s condition were not immediately available.
The Federal Aviation Administration and Santa Paula Police Department are on the scene investigating, and the National Transportation Safety Board was notified.
Another small plane made an emergency landing in Ventura County on Saturday, It was reported by CBS News. No injuries were reported in the incident, where the plane landed in a dry riverbed in Fillmore, the outlet said, and the FAA is also investigating the crash.