A Harrier jet crashed through a residential California neighborhood at 4:20 in the afternoon yesterday, badly damaging homes and starting fires but, remarkably, causing no injuries. From NBC San Diego:
The pilot safely ejected from the plane before it crashed, officials said, and no civilians on the ground were injured. Three homes were destroyed in the crash.
The American Red Cross told NBC News that 5 families have been displaced (a total of 22 people). The emergency organization also said chemicals at the site are being handled by military haz mat crews, who also put in a request with American Red Cross to talk to the affected families.
Imperial is 115 miles southeast of San Diego near the U.S.-Mexico border. The jet that crashed was flying out of the Marine Corps Air Station Yuma base, which is nearby in Arizona.
Later Wednesday night, a second fighter crashed in the San Diego area as a F/A-18E Super Hornet went down in the ocean on an attempt to land on an aircraft carrier. The pilot in that incident was also able to eject safely. No cause has yet been reported for either crash. It’s basically raining fighter jets in San Diego.
