At least 3 dead in small plane crash in Utah

A twin-engine plane crashed in southeastern Utah, killing at least three people, possibly more, the Grand County sheriff's office said.

A twin-engine plane crashed near the Canyonlands Field airport on Friday in southeastern Utah, killing at least three people, the Grand County sheriff's office said. The plane was fully engulfed in flames when emergency responders arrived, so the plane's tail number was unreadable and its ownership was not immediately known, the sheriff's office said in a statement. The pilot appeared to try to land before the crash, Sheriff James Nyland told The Salt Lake Tribune.

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"It skidded along the desert out there," he told the paper. The plane was heading southeast before it crashed. It may have taken off from Canyonlands Field, near Arches National Park, Nyland told the newspaper.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have been contacted, the sheriff's office said in a statement.

Nyland said that the Utah state medical examiner would arrive on scene Saturday morning.

The number of dead was unclear. A sheriff's office statement said at least three were believed dead, possibly more, but no other details would be released Friday night.