Military plane crashes in California, 4 reported dead

A US military aircraft carrying five Marines crashed near a California highway on Wednesday, killing four of them, local media reported. 

The Marine MV-22B Osprey went down near Highway 78 and Coachella Canal Road at about 12:25 p.m. local time.

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In a Facebook post, Naval air facility El Centro said the plane was from the third marine aircraft wing, which is an aviation unit headquartered at marine corps air station Miramar, in San Diego.

“We can confirm that an aircraft belonging to 3d Marine Aircraft Wing crashed near Glamis, CA. Military and civilian first responders are on site,” the unit said. 

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Initial reports stated that there was nuclear material in the aircraft when it crashed. 

Dismissing the reports, the unit said, “Contrary to initial reports, there was no nuclear material on board the aircraft. More information will be made available as we receive it.”

An investigation into the crash was ongoing. The cause of the crash was not known.