SAN DIEGO – An F18 military jet approaching a Marine base crashed near a school and a busy highway in a densely populated San Diego neighborhood Monday, sparking at least one house fire.
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This video frame grab image taken from KGTV television shows the scene where an F18 military jet crashed in a San Diego neighborhood, Monday December, 8, 2008, sparking at least one house fire. [Agencies]
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The pilot ejected, but it wasn't immediately clear whether the pilot or anyone on the ground was injured, officials said.
The plane crashed around noon Monday as it prepared to land at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, said Ian Gregor, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman. The crash occurred two miles from the base.
Gregor did not know the pilot's condition or how many people were in the plane before it crashed near Interstate 805.
A high school sits near the crash site. Television news footage showed what appeared to be the remnants of a smoldering house and two cars on fire.
Steve Krasner, who lives a few blocks away in the earthquake-prone region, said he first thought the shaking generated by the crash was the long-anticipated "Big One."
He was in his kitchen when he heard two loud explosions and looked outside, then heard a larger blast.
"The house shook; the ground shook. It was like I was frozen in my place," Krasner said.