By Kevin Tripp, KABC
The person who died was an experienced pilot. KTLA says his passenger is expected to survive. The crash happened during lunch. Tom Yoo from Joey’s Smokin’ BBQ says Torrance Police officers were eating in the restaurant when the plane slammed into that very building.
”They were trying to get the co-pilot or the passenger out of the plane. And they were also worried about flames, so they were asking us for the fire extinguishers, and trying to keep us away and get us evacuated so we weren’t in danger.”
Witnesses said the plane appeared to be flying erratically. No one on the ground was hurt. The Federal Aviation Administration says the plane had just taken off from the Torrance airport. The National Transportation Safety Board should release an initial report by next month.