Airplane Crashes through Roof, Injures Workers

Fullerton, CA (WorkersCompensation.com) – Nearly two dozen workers were injured after a small plane crashed through the roof of a furniture warehouse, officials said.

Officials with the Fullerton, Calif. Fire Department said dozens of people were inside the building near Fullerton Municipal Airport on Thursday when the plane crashed into the building causing a small fire. Officials said the pilot of the plane and his 16-year-old daughter died in the crash. Nineteen people inside the building were injured.

The building housed Michael Nicholas Designs, a furniture upholstery manufacturer. According to the Associated Press the building housed several sewing machines and a good deal of textile stock. Dozens of workers were evacuated from the building as the four-alarm fire sent a plume of black smoke into the air. One worker said many of those in the building ran away in terror.

"I've been working five years for this company and every day there's a plane going down here," Jerome Cruz, who worked in the building told media outlets. "I said, 'One day it's going to fall down on our roof' and I think today (was) the day."

Michael Meacham, spokesperson with the Fullerton Fire Department said that of the 19 people being treated for their injuries, 11 were taken to a hospital. The remaining injured were treated at the scene. Some 200 people work at the warehouse, officials with the company said.

Fullerton Mayor Fred Jung thanked police, firefighters and emergency response workers that responded to the crash.

“As we come together in the wake of this tragedy, the city of Fullerton is committed to providing support for all those affected and working with the agencies involved to uncover the details of this incident,” Jung said in a statement.

Security camera footage shows the plane apparently diving into the building tilted on its side. Moments after the impact, video shows a fiery explosion and a large plume of smoke rising from the crash site. According to the flight-tracking website FlightAware, the aircraft took off at 2:07 p.m. and crashed two minutes later.

"The airplane departed from Runway 24 at Fullerton about 2 p.m. this afternoon, climbed straight ahead to about 900 feet, and a short time later the pilot called for an immediate return to the airport," Eliot Simpson, an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, said. "The tower controller then cleared the pilot to land on any runway. The airplane then appeared to make a 180-degree left turn and flew the left downwind for Runway 24 and ultimately crashed about 1,000 feet short of Runway 24. It struck a furniture building and immediately caught fire."

Officials said the tower immediately confirmed that the plane could return to the airport, but that the pilot did not indicate why he needed to return. The plane crashed about 6 miles away from Disneyland and within 1,000 feet of Runway 24 at the Fullerton Municipal Airport.

According to air traffic control audio, the plane had just taken off when the pilot told the tower, “Immediate landing required.”

Officials said the pilot initially told the air traffic controller that he planned to land on Runway 6. After air traffic control turned other aircraft away from the area, the pilot was told to land on either Runway 6 or Runway 24. The pilot radioed back that he was landing on Runway 24 instead. Moments later, panicked gasping could be heard and a woman’s voice saying “Oh my God” before audio went quiet.

According to a preliminary Federal Aviation Administration report, the aircraft crashed under “unknown circumstances.”

Officials said the plane was registered to a Huntington Beach resident, according to the Federal Aviation Administration registration database, but it was not clear if the pilot of the plane was the aircraft’s owner.

Officials said the federal investigators are looking into the incident. The plane was a single engine Van’s RV-10, four-seat aircraft build in 2011 and was a kit-built airplane. Simpson said a preliminary report would be available in about 14 days, but that a final report would not be available for between 12 to 18 months.

One employee told the Orange County Register there were about 100 people working at the plant at the time of the crash. Juanita Ramirez said she was working in the warehouse when she heard a loud bang and looked up to see a large ball of fire hurtling toward her.

It is the second plane crash at the airport in recent months, the Orange County Register said. In November, another small airplane hit a tree while attempting to make an emergency landing shortly after take-off from the airport. In that incident, both people on board suffered moderate injuries and no other buildings were hit.

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