Oceanside plane crash: injuries moderate; sewage spill follows

OCEANSIDE -- A small plane crashed this morning near Oceanside Municipal Airport east of Interstate 5 in San Diego County.

The 24-year-old pilot and an 18-year-old passenger were rescued and taken to a local hospital with moderate injuries, officials said.

The plane, a Cessna 172 registered to an El Cajon flight school, clipped a power line on approach to the runway and crashed. The plane did not catch fire and there were no structures damaged nor any injuries on the ground.

But the plane struck a valve to a sewage pipe, releasing 25,000 gallons of raw sewage onto the nearby street and the plane wreckage. Crews from Oceanside Fire Department, Camp Pendleton and the county's hazardous-material squad were able to remove the sewage; 15 personnel had to be decontaminated at the site.

At midday, the wreckage remained near Foussat Road and Highway 76. The flight plan showed that the plane was destined from Gillespie Field in El Cajon to Torrance.

Officials said the plane apparently developed mechanical trouble and the pilot was attempting an emergency landing.

-- Tony Perry