Two children died at the scene, and an injured woman later died at a hospital after the crash near Sierra Sky Park.
FRESNO, CA — Three people, including two children, have died after a small plane carrying four people crashed near Sierra Sky Park in northwest Fresno on Saturday, authorities said. An adult man who survived the crash remained hospitalized in critical condition Sunday.
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said the two children were pronounced dead at the scene after the aircraft crashed near the San Joaquin River on Sept. 5. Two adults were initially taken to a hospital in critical condition. Authorities said Sunday that the adult woman later died, raising the death toll to three.
Deputies, firefighters and police were dispatched at about 1:50 p.m. to the 7300 block of North Blythe Avenue, according to information released by the sheriff’s office. First responders found a fixed-wing, single-engine airplane on fire atop a bluff near the river. Firefighters extinguished the flames and kept the fire from spreading to nearby residential properties.
The identities and ages of the people aboard the aircraft had not been released as of Sunday. Authorities also had not publicly confirmed how the four people were related to one another. The adult man remained in critical condition, according to the latest information from the sheriff’s office reported Sunday.
The crash happened near Sierra Sky Park Airport, a small airport in northwest Fresno. Authorities have not announced what caused the aircraft to go down. The National Transportation Safety Board was sending an investigator to the scene as federal officials began examining the circumstances surrounding the crash.
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office established a safety perimeter around the crash site to keep people away and preserve evidence for investigators. The agency said the perimeter would remain in place as investigators examined the wreckage and surrounding area.
The crash also disrupted electrical service in the surrounding area. Local reporting said the outage affected nearby homes before power was restored. Emergency crews from several agencies responded, including the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, Fresno Fire Department, Fresno Police Department and North Central Fire Department.
Early reports Saturday said two people had died and two others were critically injured. Officials later clarified that the two people killed at the scene were children. The death toll rose again Sunday after authorities confirmed that one of the hospitalized adults, a woman, had died from her injuries.
Investigators had not released a preliminary cause of the crash or additional details about the aircraft’s flight by Sunday. The names of those killed were also being withheld as authorities continued the investigation and identification process. Federal investigators are expected to determine what led to the crash.
Author note: Last updated September 6, 2026.