2 dead after small plane crashes in Virginia

Two people were killed on Sunday after a small plane crashed in a north-central Virginia county, authorities said.

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According to the Virginia State Police, both occupants of the privately owned, twin-engine aircraft -- the pilot and passenger -- died when it crashed in Fluvanna County, WRIC-TV reported.

Officials were alerted to reports of a plane crash at about 8:54 a.m. EDT, according to WVIR-TV . Debris from the plane was discovered in a wooded area in Palmyra, according to the television station.

Residents along the 200 block of Miles Jackson Road had called authorities after observing a low-flying plane and then hearing what they described as “an explosion,” Virginia State Police Public Relations Director Corinne Geller told WTVR .

The impact from the crash caused portions of the aircraft to catch fire, WVIR reported.

Fire companies from Palmyra, Fork Union, Kents Store, and Lake Monticello responded to the scene and extinguished the fire, according to WTVR .

According to state police, both bodies are being transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Richmond for examination and autopsies, WRIC reported.

Their identities are being withheld pending next-of-kin notification, police said.

Authorities said the plane had left the Manassas Regional Airport and was flying to South Carolina, according to the television station. There was light rain at the time of the crash.

The crash remains under investigation by state police, the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration .