At least five people were killed when a private, twin-engine plane with six passengers on board crashed in Louisiana on Saturday.
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Lafayette Fire Chief Robert Benoit confirmed four passengers and the pilot were killed in the crash, while one passenger survived and was taken to the hospital in unknown condition. A second person not affiliated with the plane was taken to the hospital with injuries.
The plane came down near a Walmart and U.S. Post Office at the intersection of Verot School Road and Feu Follet, according to local media.
AT LEAST 12 KILLED, DOZENS HURT WHEN PLANE SLAMS INTO BUILDING AFTER JARRING TAKEOFF
The incident took place at 9:22 a.m. local time, Lafayette Police Lt. Scott Morgan told Fox News.
The cause of the crash is unknown. Federal investigators are en route to the scene.
“We know it came down in a parking lot,” he said. The plane had taken off from Lafayette Regional Airport.
While trying to make an emergency landing, the plane reportedly hit a power line, according to local reports, blowing out the windows over a nearby post office. The local Walmart is closed and has been evacuated.
"I was right outside before the crash," resident Kevin Jackson told KLFY. "I noticed [the plane] was low and smoking like hell. It shook my trailer."
He added: "I knew something was bad. I went in my house, and all you heard was this massive explosion."
The fourth-largest city in Louisiana, Lafayette had a population of about 130,000 according to the 2018 census and is located about 135 miles west of New Orleans.
On Twitter, Gov. John Bel Edwards called the news "heartbreaking" and a "terrible tragedy."
"Please join @FirstLadyOfLA and I in praying for the families and friends of everyone affected by this terrible tragedy," he wrote.
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Fox News' Lucia I. Suarez and Robert Gearty contributed to this report.
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