Small plane carrying at least 2 people crashes into townhomes near Portland, engulfs home in flames

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A small plane crashed into a collection of townhouses Saturday morning in a neighborhood east of Portland, causing a massive fire.

Gresham Fire Chief Scott Lewis said at least two people were aboard the aircraft and one person inside the townhomes was unaccounted for, KPTV-TV in Portland reported. No deaths have been confirmed.

Photos and videos published by the news station show at least one of the townhouses engulfed in flames and a thick plume of black smoke in the air.

The Federal Aviation Administration identified the aircraft as a twin-engine Cessna 421C, which it says went down around 10:30 a.m. near Troutdale Airport, about a 30-minute drive east of Portland.

As the plane went down, it knocked over a pole and power lines, causing a separate but brief fire in a nearby field, according to the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office. The plane was split into multiple parts as it crashed in the residential area in the city of Fairview.

Troutdale Airport is described on the Port of Portland’s website as a “flight training and recreational airport.”