Small Plane Hits Several Cars in Emergency Landing on California Highway

A small single-engine airplane made an emergency landing on a California highway Tuesday, hitting several cars and lodging part of its wing into an SUV, according to local media reports.

The plane landed on southbound Interstate 5 near Del Mar in San Diego's North County, NBC San Diego reported. According to California Highway Patrol (CHP), the small aircraft landed around 12 p.m. local time, causing traffic jams and prompting several emergency vehicles to rush to the scene.

Aerial Reporter Malik Earnest said the small aircraft took off from Montgomery-Gibbs Airport in San Diego before making the emergency landing. According to CHP, there were two people inside the plane.

"Several agencies from all over San Diego are on scene.@CHP_BCC reports two souls were aboard the plane, and there are no serious injuries to report. The plane did hit several cars, lodging a part of its wing in the rear of an SUV," Earnest tweeted.

Jose Ysea, a spokesman for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, said the airplane "clipped" several vehicles before rolling to a stop against a center-divider wall, news station KPBS reported. Two people in damaged cars were then transported to a hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

The two occupants of the plane are reported to not be injured, Ysea told the outlet.

Aerial photographs of the scene showed the small plane off to the far left of the southbound lanes, resting near the freeway's divider. The plane appeared to be missing half of its right wing, which was located about 500 feet away from the aircraft.

There were reports that fuel was leaking onto the northbound side of the highway, according to NBC San Diego.

The CHP has since closed all southbound lanes and said traffic is being diverted off the freeway. Video footage showed stunned drivers getting out of their cars and taking photos of the crashed plane and its broken wing.

By Tuesday afternoon, it was not immediately clear who was operating the plan or what forced the emergency landing. The CHP and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said they are now investigating the incident and will update the public when more information becomes available.

"The FAA will release the aircraft tail number after investigators verify it at the scene. The FAA will investigate. The agency does not identify people involved in aircraft accidents or incidents. We will provide additional updates as we get them," the agency said in a statement,.

Newsweek contacted the CHP for additional comment but did not hear back in time for publication.