California plane crash claims lives of 2 children

Two children are dead and two adults are fighting for their lives after a small plane rushed to the ground near a Fresno airport, California Saturday afternoon, reports Yahoo News.

The aircraft, carrying four people, crashed near the San Joaquin River just before 2pm, sending emergency crews scrambling to the scene.

Tony Botti, a public information officer for the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, told The California Post authorities got the call around 1:50pm about a plane crash near the far north end of Blythe Avenue, close to Sierra Sky Park.

Firefighters, cops and sheriff’s deputies arrived to find plane wreckage on a bluff near the river as flames tore across a nearby hillside.

Two adults were rushed to a hospital in critical condition. The victims’ identities and exact ages had not yet been confirmed.

What caused the plane to go down remained unclear Saturday as investigators began piecing together the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are both involved. Botti said, with the NTSB taking the lead in determining what went wrong.

A secured perimeter was thrown around the wreckage to keep people out and give investigators room to work.

Fresno police, Fresno Fire Department, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, PG&E and North Central Fire Department also responded, according to ABC30.

The crash also knocked out power to nearby residents, although service was later restored, according to PG&E’s outage map.