Small plane crashes into a tree near Fullerton Airport

A small plane crashed into a tree near Fullerton Airport on Monday. 

The crash happened around 1:45 p.m. in the 2400 block of Artesia Avenue. No one was seriously injured, according to the Fullerton Police Department.

The two people on board suffered moderate injuries. Paramedics took them to the hospital for treatment.

It's unclear what caused the crash, but audio from the pilot's call to Air Traffic Control revealed what he called "engine roughness." It had previously taken off from Brackett Field Airport in La Verne at around 1:30 p.m. before briefly landing in Fullerton.

Video from the scene shows the moments that the plane landed, first clipping a tree and shearing a fire hydrant before slamming into a eucalyptus tree just outside of a warehouse in the area. 

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, who are investigating the crash, the plane is a Mooney M20. 

A witness who said he had to jump out of the way of getting hit by the plane says that both of the occupants appeared to be men in their 30s. 

"It didn't come over the normal flight pattern ... I thought it was gonna hit the top of the tree so that's when I realized something bad was gonna happen," said Scott Jennings, who witnessed the crash. "It scared me and I jumped up on the grass and turned around and it ... broke part of the wing off on the light pole and then it kinda bounced and hit the fire hydrant and then smacked into the tree."

Police closed Artesia Avenue in both directions from Gilbert Street to Dale Street for the ensuing investigation.