Light plane crashes in Santee residential neighborhood

SANTEE - A twin-engine plane crashed in a residential neighborhood near Santana High School today, engulfing several homes in flames and injuring at least two people.

The Cessna C340 went down in the area of the 9900 block of North Magnolia Avenue in Santee about 12:15 p.m., according to the San Diego County

Sheriff's Department and Federal Aviation Administration.

It was not immediately clear how many people were aboard the six-seat aircraft when it plunged to the ground.

Aerial news footage showed a pair of homes gutted by fire with a crumpled and charred vehicle, possibly a delivery van, in the roadway in front of them.

Paramedics took two people to a trauma center for treatment of burn injuries, said Andy McKellar, spokesman for Heartland Fire & Rescue.

Officials with the city of Santee acknowledged at least two burn victims from the crash, along with ``possible fatalities.''

Administrators at the nearby secondary school instituted a ``secure campus'' status as a precaution and deputies closed Jeremy Street and North

Magnolia Avenue between Mast Boulevard and Second Street while emergency crews worked to extinguish the fires and mitigate other damage caused by the plane crash, officials said. The school lifted the ``secure campus'' designation by early afternoon and students were being ``released for lunch or dismissal, if they do not have any other classes today.''

The Red Cross established an evacuation center at Cameron Family YMCA, 10123 Riverwalk Drive, in Santee, for residents forced from their homes due

to the crash.

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