( CNN ) -- All three people on board a twin-engine plane died Wednesday when their aircraft crashed into a residential East Palo Alto , California , neighborhood , a spokesman with the Federal Aviation Administration said . The victims were employees of Tesla Motors , a luxury electric car company . `` Three Tesla employees were on board a plane that crashed in East Palo Alto early this morning . We are withholding their identities as we work with the relevant authorities to notify the families , '' said CEO Elon Musk in a statement . `` Our thoughts and prayers are with them . Tesla is a small , tightly knit company , and this is a tragic day for us . '' The Cessna 310 took off from Palo Alto Airport at 7:53 a.m. , FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said . During takeoff , the plane struck 60-foot high power lines , forcing the plane down onto a driveway , said Josh Cawthra , a National Transportation Safety Board aviation accident investigator . Four homes were affected , and two had fire damage , Menlo Park Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman said at a press conference . A day care in a house sustained heavy damage when the plane went down , East Palo Alto Police Capt . Carl Estelle said . No children were there at the time . The craft 's fuselage landed in a house 's yard , sparking a fire that destroyed several vehicles , Estelle said . One of the engines fell elsewhere in the neighborhood , apparently hitting the rear overhang of a yard , he said . `` Miraculously , incredibly , no one was injured on the ground , '' Schapelhouman said . The crash site was about one mile northeast of the airport , he said . The travelers were headed to Hawthorne Municipal Airport in Hawthorne , California , more than 350 miles south , according to Gregor . Gregor noted foggy conditions , but said it was not known if the weather played a role in the accident . Gregor said the cause of the crash was unknown . Patricia Armistad said she lives maybe four or five houses from the impact site . `` I heard a loud bang and when I went to my bedroom window I felt a big hit , like an earthquake , '' she said . She ran outside into the thick fog and immediately saw neighbors rushing to help , she said . Residents pulled people from the damaged houses and used their garden hoses to extinguish fires , she said . iReport : More photos from the scene . The crash triggered a massive power outage in the area . In addition to transmission lines , the aircraft also struck a transmission tower , Pacific Gas and Electric spokesman Joe Molica said . The tower and lines run electricity into neighboring Palo Alto , he said . Some 28,000 customers lost electricity , but power had been restored to all by 6:15 p.m. , according to the City of Palo Alto Web site . CNN 's Khadijah Rentas contributed to this report .
Plane crashes into East Palo Alto , California , neighborhood , fire chief says . Three deaths on the plane ; no one injured on ground , chief says . Plane took off from Palo Alto Airport in foggy conditions before crash , official says . Day care center in one house hit , but no children were there , he says .