Small plane crash-lands on streets of Hawthorne, bursts into flames; 2 critically injured

HAWTHORNE, Calif. (KABC) -- A small plane crash-landed on the streets of Hawthorne early Friday morning, critically injuring two people aboard.

The small, single-engine Piper Comanche crashed, then caught fire shortly before 1 a.m. along the 4400 block of El Segundo Boulevard, according to the L.A. County Fire Department. Emergency crews knocked down the flames.

Officials believe the plane was getting ready to land into Hawthorne Airport when it crashed just about a mile away.

The two injured individuals were the pilot and the passenger, who were believed to be the only people on board the aircraft. They were transported to the hospital in critical condition.

A witness who was charging his Tesla nearby rushed to help the victims.

"I had just arrived at this location and plugged my vehicle in and sat in my car, and not two minutes later, I heard a loud crash," described Jerald Johnson. "Myself and a couple other gentlemen helped pull a man out from the wreckage in hopes of getting him away from that before it exploded."

Nobody on the ground was injured, and no buildings were damaged.

It's unclear what caused the plane to go down. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the incident.