Three People Killed in Plane Crash Near Lake Elsinore

Three people aboard a small plane were killed Sunday when it crashed in the Santa Ana Mountains, off the Ortega Highway near Lake Elsinore.

Firefighters were dispatched at 9:22 a.m. to an area close to the Lookout Roadhouse restaurant, in the 32100 block of Ortega Highway, in response to a small fire.

[RELATED:  A witness described seeing 'big flames' after the aircraft nosed down near his property in an interview with DailySoCal.com.]

Fire crews discovered the fire had been sparked by the plane crash, which occurred less than a mile south of the eatery, dispatchers with the Cleveland National Forest said.

The fire was contained to less than a half-acre. It was not known immediately known what kind of an aircraft had crash but there were three confirmed fatalities, the Riverside County Fire Department reported.

Images from the scene show the wreckage was scattered across the hilly area near Lake Elsinore. 

Officials have not yet released the tail number or other identifying information from the incident while they investigate at the scene. 

— City News Service contributed to this report.