Small plane crashes into San Diego neighborhood as crews rush to find survivors

A small plane crashed into a San Diego neighborhood early Thursday, setting multiple cars and homes on fire and prompting an evacuation of part of the neighborhood.

A small Cessna 550 carrying an unknown number of passengers crashed into the Murphy Canyon neighborhood while headed to Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport around 3:47 a.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The crash, which occurred during foggy weather, prompted the evacuation of a stretch of homes within the military housing neighborhood.

"There are multiple cars engulfed, we have jet fuel all over the place. We have hazmat on scene, and we asked for more resources. We are also working with the military," Assistant Fire Department Chief Dan Eddy said. "The main goal moving forward is to ensure all those houses are cleared and no one is inside. Then we will move in the middle where the plane crashed near the cars and search them, then search the plane."

There was “a direct hit to multiple homes,” Eddy said, according to NBC San Diego.

Eddy also noted it was very foggy at the time the plane crashed, telling reporters, “You could barely see in front of you,” however, authorities have not yet determined whether the weather played a role in the crash.

It was not immediately known how many people were on the plane, and whether there were any injuries. The Cessna 550 aircraft can carry six to eight people.

Eddy told reporters no passengers had been transported from the scene as of early Thursday, according to NBC.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.

This is a developing story...

With Associated Press contributions.