Three killed when small plane crashes near mall

HAWTHORNE, Calif. - A small plane crashed on a suburban street near a shopping mall Sunday, killing all three people aboard, authorities said.

The single-engine plane had just left Hawthorne Municipal Airport when it went down about noon at the edge of the mall parking lot, snapping power lines and bursting into flames.

Luis Diaz, an operations officer with the Federal Aviation Administration, said all three victims had been aboard the plane, but he didn't know where the plane, described as a Piper PA-46 Malibu, had been heading.

The pilot did not report any problems before the plane crashed about 14 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles, police Lt. James McInerny said.

Marisela Guerrero, 25, was working at the drive-through window of a Taco Bell restaurant about 50 feet from where the plane came to a rest on a sidewalk.

About 20 people were inside the restaurant at the time, she said. ''I came inside and said (to the customers) 'Go, go, go!''' Most of the customers and workers had already run from the building, she said.

The plane caught fire, but the flames were quickly extinguished.

Jose Rodriguez, 26, said he was returning to the shopping mall after making a pizza delivery, and was at a stoplight when the plane came down.

''I saw pieces of the plane flying everywhere,'' he said.