California IN BRIEF : CONCORD : Two Killed in Plane Crash

Two people died when their small plane crashed near California 4, clipping a car and forcing the closure of the road, authorities said. Witnesses reported that the twin-engine plane was circling at a low altitude about 2:45 p.m. before it hit a highway overpass and the car. The plane then crashed below the overpass and burst into flames. The identities of the pilot and the passenger were not immediately known, the California Highway Patrol said. Jill Severn and her two children escaped injury when the plane hit their car. Severn said she did not immediately know what had hit the vehicle. “The kids said, ‘Mommy, we just got hit by a plane,’ ” Severn said. Westbound lanes of California 4 were closed because of the accident, the CHP said. The cause of the accident was not immediately known, although the Federal Aviation Administration was expected to investigate.