Small plane carrying 3 people crashes off California coast search underway

     Pacific Grove (US), Jul 27 (AP) Authorities are searching for three people who were aboard a private twin-engine plane that crashed off the central California coast.
     Emergency officials responded Saturday night after receiving a lost radar alert and 911 calls from residents, KSBW-TV reported.
     Witnesses reported hearing an aircraft engine revving and a splash in the water near the coast of Pacific Grove, the station reported.
     The small plane, a Beech 95-B55 Baron, took off from the San Carlos airport at 10:11 pm local time and was last seen at 10:37 pm near Monterrey, according to flight tracking data from FlightAware.com.
     Several agencies responded to the crash and search effort, including the US Coast Guard and California's Dept of Forestry and Fire Protection.
     People on shore reported seeing debris wash up from the crashed aircraft. Coast Guard officials estimated the plane crashed about 183 to 274 metres off shore, the news station reported.
     The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate. (AP) NPK
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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)