FULLERTON, Calif. — Two people died and 19 were injured Thursday when a small plane crashed through the roof of a sprawling furniture manufacturing building in Southern California where at least 200 people were working, police said.

The people who died were believed to have been on the plane, while those injured were inside the building. The deceased victims will be identified after officials have contacted the next of kin, the Fullerton Police Department said in a statement.

Eleven people were taken to hospitals, while eight were treated and released at the scene, police said.

The plane crashed less than two minutes after taking off from the Fullerton Municipal Airport in Orange County, located 6 miles from Disneyland, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware.

Security camera footage from Rucci Forged, a wheel manufacturer across the street, shows the plane was tilted on its side as it dove into the building, causing a fiery explosion and black plume of smoke.

Firefighters and police arrived on scene and battled the blaze and evacuated surrounding businesses, Fullerton police spokesperson Kristy Wells said.

Chris Villalobos, an airport operations worker, came to the warehouse to see what had happened after receiving a phone call about a plane going down nearby. He noted the airplane’s owner was a regular at the airport and has frequently taken off from there.

“He has a hangar here and everything,” Villalobos said.

After taking off, the pilot told air traffic control he was going to turn around to make an emergency landing, but it was unclear what the issue with the plane was, Villalobos said.

The building struck by the plane was occupied by Michael Nicholas Designs, a furniture upholstery manufacturer, according to a sign on a door. There appeared to be sewing machines and textile stock inside.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the accident and identified the plane as a single-engine, four-seat Van’s RV-10. The National Transportation Safety Board said it also is investigating.

The airport in Fullerton has one runway and a heliport. Metrolink, a regional train line, is nearby and flanks a residential neighborhood and commercial warehouse buildings.

The Fullerton City Council posted a statement on social media calling the crash a “solemn tragedy.”

“The City of Fullerton is committed to providing support for all those affected and working with the agencies involved to uncover the details of this incident,” Mayor Fred Jung said in the statement. “We are grateful for the strength of our community and the compassion we show one another in times of crisis.”

Another four-seat plane crashed into a tree a half-mile from the airport in November while making an emergency landing shortly after takeoff, The Orange County Register reported. Both people on board suffered moderate injuries.

Fullerton is a city of about 140,000 people about 25 miles southeast of Los Angeles.

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University of Maine Cooperative Extension is collaborating with several local organizations in York and Androscoggin counties to present a series of maple sugaring workshops for beginners and small-scale producers in January and February. There is also an online option hosted by the Maine Organic Farmers and Growers Association.

All of the programs are designed for backyard and homestead-scale systems that require a limited initial investment in equipment. Discussions will include identifying and tapping trees, collecting and boiling sap, as well as filtering, grading and canning syrup.

On February 1, the Southern Maine Maple Sugarmakers Association (SMMSA) will host Backyard Maple Sugaring, from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at the York County Extension Office, 45 Kennebunk Road in Alfred, ME. This day-long workshop is developed to give participants a more in-depth overview of the sugaring process. The morning session will include demonstrations and discussions by UMaine Extension Maple Industry Educator Jason Lilley and several established maple syrup producers. The afternoon will include a tour of a local sugarhouse to highlight how they got started and demonstrate the sap processing equipment that they use. The cost of this workshop will be $18 and includes a how-to guide. Visit the event webpage to register.

A virtual session hosted by MOFGA and led by Lilley is planned for January 7, from 6 – 8 p.m. Visit MOFGA’s event page to register.

The remaining workshops, which do not include a sugarhouse tour, are scheduled to last approximately 2 hours and will be held at the Julia Adams Morse Memorial Library in Greene on January 9, Massabesic Adult Education in Waterboro on January 30, and Lewiston Adult Education in Lewiston on February 4. Look for registration information about these events coming in January.

For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact jason.lilley@maine.edu

About University of Maine Cooperative Extension

As a trusted resource for over 100 years, Extension has supported UMaine’s land and sea grant public education role by conducting community-driven, research-based programs in every Maine county. UMaine Extension seeks to build thriving communities and grow the food-based economy, focusing on aspects from production and processing to nutrition, food safety and food security. Extension also conducts the most successful out-of-school youth educational program in Maine through 4-H which offers hands-on projects in areas like health, science, agriculture and civic engagement and creates a positive environment where participants are encouraged to take on proactive leadership roles.

There’s going to be yet another chance to see the Northern Lights in Maine tonight.

There have been viewing opportunities all week after the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center issued an alert Sunday night that the aurora borealis may be visible at high latitudes on Dec. 30 and 31. Since that storm the viewing opportunities have continued.

“Aurora may be visible at high latitudes, i.e., northern tier of the U.S. such as northern Michigan and Maine,” a Jan. 2 alert from the agency said.

When will the northern lights be visible?

The northern lights could be visible tonight once the sun goes down in parts of the northern United States, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

The aurora is not visible during the daylight hours, and is usually seen just after sunset or just before sunrise, according to NOAA. The agency says the best aurora is usually within an hour or two of midnight.

Where to check the northern lights forecast

To track the latest northern lights forecast, check out these websites: