Small plane crashes in North Glendale, cutting power to neighborhood

The pilot of a single-engine plane crashed into the front yard of a North Glendale home Monday night, knocking down power lines before coming to a rest upside down, police said. 

The 55-year-old pilot, who walked away from the wreckage, is expected to recover from his injuries. 

Air traffic controllers lost contact with the plane about 8 p.m., just after the pilot reported having engine trouble.

The plane crashed shortly afterward in the 1200 block of Glenwood Road in Glendale, hitting three power poles and sheering off a wing before coming to rest, Glendale police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said.

The house escaped unscathed and no other injuries were reported, he added.

“It's amazing, especially in this neighborhood where people are out walking their dogs at night,” Lorenz said.

Firefighters briefly evacuated three homes in the immediate area.

The pilot was the only occupant of the plane — a Cessna 210 headed for Burbank Bob Hope Airport — and was able to get of the wreckage himself and talk with paramedics after the crash, complaining of a shoulder injury, according to police.

Paramedics took the pilot, whose identity was not immediately available Monday night, to L.A. County-USC Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition and expected to recover from his injuries.

Firefighters had been standing by in Burbank, ready for the plane's landing.

The crash caused a power outage in the area, at one point affecting roughly 30 blocks and about 1,600 residents, according to city officials.

Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board were en route to take over the investigation into the cause of the crash, Lorenz said.