A search-and-rescue operation is underway after two small aircraft collided in mid-air off the community of San Pedro in Los Angeles, officials say. The number of people on board the planes was not immediately known.
The incident happened at about 3 p.m. PT on Friday when a bystander reported seeing a small aircraft entering the water near San Pedro, which is just west of the Port of Los Angeles. The U.S. Coast Guard and the LA County Fire Department’s Lifeguards later said two aircraft were involved in the accident.
Allen Kenitzer, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), said it had received reports about the accident but provided no further details. “We have no information on the type of aircraft or the number of people onboard,” he said in an email.
The U.S. Coast Guard, along with local fire departments including the Los Angeles Fire Department, are carrying out a search-and-rescue operation to locate the planes and any survivors. The entrance to the Los Angeles Harbor has been closed to all vessel traffic to allow for effective search efforts of the debris field.
Other information was not immediately available.
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