Updated: Plane Crashes in Hawthorne

A small plane was obliterated upon impact in a crash in Hawthorne shortly after takeoff from the Hawthorne Municipal Airport.

The pilot crashed onto the road and sidewalk along a busy Hawthorne thoroughfare. She was in full cardiac arrest when rescuers reached her and was pronounced dead at the hospital

Shortly after noon, the plane slammed into a tree and fell into the road in the 3600 of West 120th Street, which runs parallel to the airport.

"She was in traumatic full arrest when we arrived," Mora said. "Some lifesaving measures were established."

County firefighters attempted to extricate the pilot from the aircraft while tackling a fire that engulfed the plane.

"The bottom line is it's a tragedy. We did lose somebody or possibly lose somebody today," Mora said. "Hopefully we can find out what happened to prevent this in the future."

The roadway remains closed to traffic in both directions and will likely stay closed for some time as authorities investigate, according to county fire Capt. Keith Mora.

"Until we feel that this scene is safe, and also they have the information that they need to build an investigation on, we will close the entire street, the whole area and really just isolate it," Mora told NBC.

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