Investigators tackle plane wreckage in Compton
Authorities say the injured pilot is cooperating and it will likely take months to determine why the craft plunged into two homes, hurting 5 people.
Federal investigators used a massive crane today to try to lift the remains of a twin-engine plane that crashed into two Compton houses Saturday, seriously injuring the pilot, a passenger and three people on the ground, all of whom remained hospitalized.
All of the injured are expected to survive, relatives and investigators said.
Investigators said it was still not clear this afternoon why the Cessna 310 plunged nose-first into the wall and roof of two houses in the 500 block of West Cypress Street shortly before 4 p.m. Saturday.
By early afternoon, a large yellow crane tugged upward on the aircraft's tail as workers attempted to pull it free from a home it sliced into on impact. A dump truck full of what appeared to be tree clippings and crash debris was parked in the home's driveway.
The pilot has been cooperating with investigators and is expected to provide a written statement detailing the plane's condition and events leading up to the crash, said Wayne Pollack, a senior air investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board.
Pollack said federal investigators have yet to examine the plane's machinery. He said it will likely take months for them to determine what caused the crash.
Investigators had not released the name of the pilot or passenger as of this afternoon. A news conference is scheduled for later this afternoon.
Federal records show the 36 year-old plane was registered to Eureka International Inc. of Carson City, Nev.
Relatives of those injured in the crash said they were frustrated at the lack of new information from investigators this afternoon.
Artis Hosley, 72, lives down the street from the crash that injured his daughter Regina Hosley, 44. She remained hospitalized this afternoon with a fractured eye socket, face and possibly broken arm, he said, and "she's kind of miserable."
Investigators have not given the family any new information about what caused the crash, Hosley said.
"I would like to know what's going to happen. Nobody has been around to tell us anything," he said. "Who's responsible for this? Who's going to take care of all this?"
molly.hennessy-fiske@latimes.com
