Tragedy struck east of the Twin Cities on Saturday morning as a small plane crashed, claiming the lives of two individuals.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office reported that the incident occurred shortly before 9:45 a.m. in the vicinity of the 15000 block of Afton Hills Boulevard South. Multiple 911 calls alerted authorities to what neighbors described as resembling a small explosion.

Upon arrival at the scene, first responders discovered a small aircraft engulfed in flames in the yard of a residence near an attached garage. Despite efforts to extinguish the fire, the plane sustained significant damage.

Following the suppression of the blaze, responders recovered the bodies of an 85-year-old man from White Bear Lake and a 68-year-old man from Baytown Township. Family members identified one of the victims as 85-year-old Pat Moore from White Bear Lake, revealing that he and the other individual were en route to a museum in Granite Falls.

Witnesses recounted harrowing moments as they observed the plane's descent. Lisa, a nearby resident who preferred not to appear on camera, recounted seeing the aircraft plummeting from the sky, an image she found difficult to comprehend.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) identified the aircraft model as a Global GC1. Both the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the NTSB have initiated investigations into the crash, seeking to ascertain the circumstances leading to the tragic incident.