Five adults were tragically killed after a small engine plane crashed on Catalina Island in Los Angeles.
The Avalon Sheriff Station was notified of a 911 S.O.S. emergency from a cellular device around 8.08PM Tuesday after a twin-engine Beechcraft 95 crashed soon after departing from Catalina Airport in Avalon, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The cellular device used to call in the emergency stated the user’s cellphone has been involved in a collision with possible injuries and provided a location as G.P.S. coordinates, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department said.
Avalon Station deputies, the Los Angeles County Fire Department, Avalon Search and Rescue, and Avalon City Fire Department personnel all responded to the scene and found wreckage of the aircraft about one mile west of Catalina Island Airport.
Along with the wreckage, authorities also located the five victims who lost their lives in the crash. Their identities have not yet been released.
The Avalon Sheriff Station was notified of a 911 S.O.S. emergency from a cellular device around 8.08PM Tuesday after a twin-engine Beechcraft 95 crashed soon after departing from Catalina Airport in Avalon
Along with the wreckage, authorities also located the five victims who lost their lives in the crash. Their identities have not yet been released. (pictured: stock image of Catalina Island)
Flight records revealed that the plane took off around 5.45PM that day. According to the National Weather Service there were no thick fog advisories at the time, CBS News reported.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the FAA have taken over the investigation for the crash.
Jennifer Gabris, a spokesperson with the NTSB, told DailyMail.com: An NTSB investigator is traveling to the scene and is expected to arrive later today.
Once the investigator arrives, they will start to process the scene and examine the crashed aircraft.
Part of the investigation will be to request radar data, weather information, maintenance records and the pilot’s medical records. NTSB investigators will look at the human, machine and environment as the outline of the investigation, Gabris added.
The agency said a preliminary report is expected to come out within 30 days after the incident, and a probable cause of the crash will be released in one to two years.
The NTSB, FAA and the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department have urged the public to report any information regarding the crash, including contact information and medical history for those on board.
Just last week, five people, including a child were killed after a single-engine plane crashed in North Carolina.
Jason Campbell, 45, was among five people who perished when the doomed aircraft - a Cirrus SR22 - crashed on September 28 near the woods near Wright Brothers National Memorials First Flight Airport.
Flight records revealed that the plane took off around 5.45PM that day. According to the National Weather Service there were no thick fog advisories at the time. (pictured: Catalina Airport runway)
Campbell was a native of Lubbock and served as a commander in the Armys Special Forces.
The three other adults have been identified as Shashwat Ajit Adhikari, 31, Kate McAllister Neely, 39, and Matthew Arthur Fassnacht, 44. The child has not been named.
The plane crashed approximately 90 miles south of Virginia Beach, Virginia, as per KLJB News radio.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the crash.
The day after the crash, the Wright Brothers National Memorial was closed.