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The MCAS bomb disposal unit was called in to recover the ordnance from the scene of a Marine Harrier jet crash in a residential neighborhood in southeast Yuma Wednesday afternoon.
There were no injuries immediately reported.
An unidentified 33-year-old pilot ejected from the aircraft at about 1,000 feet in the air before the plane crashed near a home in the area of Kuns Court, according to initial reports. The pilot was reported in good condition.
The aircraft reportedly was carrying four 500-pound bomb and 300 25mm cannon rounds at the time it crashed, said Lt. Col. Mark Butler, a spokesman for the Marine Corps Air Station.
Residents living within an area bounded by Arizona Avenue, Pacific Avenue, 24th Street and 32nd Street were being evacuated to Gila Vista Junior High School for an anticipated period of 12 hours or more.
The Harrier was assigned to Yuma-based Harrier squadron VMA-513 and was on the way back from a training mission, Butler said.
He said the pilot would not have left on the training mission had he not planned to drop the ordnance in the training. Butler said an investigation will determine why the ordnance was not used in the mission.
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
The crash created a large black cloud that hovered over the southeast corner of the city. Police and emergency vehicles would be seen racing along 24th Street to the crash scene shortly after 2:30 p.m.
Police at the scene said the aircraft was a Harrier jet.
The Sun will update this bulletin as more details become available.

http://sun.yumasun.com/artman/publish/articles/story_17263.php