LOS ANGELES (Reuters)

At least two people were killed and eight others injured on Thursday (May 22) when a small plane crashed in a San Diego neighbourhood where military families lived, damaging houses and vehicles.

The crash occurred around 3:45 am local time (1045 GMT) in a military housing complex in the Tierrasanta neighbourhood, local officials said. The crash site is a little more than two miles east of Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport.

It was unclear how many people were onboard the plane when it crashed. Police said they believed no one on the ground was killed, but could not immediately confirm that.

“We had a plane that had come through this neighbourhood, taking out one home,” San Diego Fire-Rescue Assistant Chief Dan Eddy said at a news conference in front of a damaged home.

When fire crews arrived on the scene, they found one home and multiple vehicles on fire, Eddy said.

The San Diego Police Department reported two people were confirmed dead and eight others were injured, as of 11:00 am Thursday.

Only one person with minor injuries was transported to a hospital as of Thursday morning, Eddy said.

About 100 people were evacuated from homes in the neighbourhood as of late Thursday morning.

The plane was identified as a Cessna 550 by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The plane, whose route originated in the Midwest, was bound for San Diego, Eddy said.

The tract where the crash occurred is managed by Liberty Military Housing, officials said.

“We are actively working with all military families affected, specifically within this region, because they may be out of their homes for a while,” said Captain Bob Heely, commanding officer of Naval Base San Diego.

Heely said he was working with Liberty Military Housing and the Red Cross to provide temporary housing to the affected families.

“As you can see, the damage behind us is incredibly significant, was life-threatening, and thank God nobody on the ground was killed,” Raul Campillo, a member of the San Diego City Council, said at a news conference near the crash site.

The crash will be investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.