2 People Dead After Plane Crashes Into Sauk Rapids Home

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Two people died Friday night when the plane they were in crashed into a Sauk Rapids, Minn., home, starting it on fire.

According to the incident report, Sauk Rapids police responded to a call about a plane crash around 8:26 p.m. in the 700 block of Garden Place.

"Truly, it's a freak accident," said Police Chief Perry Beise. "It's not something that we normally see."

The two people inside the small, single-engine private plane were sightseeing when they crashed into the home.

A 15-year-old witness told WCCO Radio that the plane was flying low and behind a larger one. The smaller plane then fell from the sky, flipped over and smashed into the house.

Wade Thelen, whose house is just feet away from the house the plane hit, said he ran outside when he heard the crash.

"I came outside, it was just engulfed in flames," he said.

The head was so intense that the siding on nearby houses peeled off.

One person was in the home when the crash happened. He was able to jump out a window to safety.

Fire crews were able to knock down the fire, but it destroyed much of the house.

Police said the bodies of the victims were recovered from inside. The cause of death has not yet been determined, and their names have not been released.

Local and aviation officials are continuing to investigate the cause of the crash.

Meanwhile, the community is in disbelief. Many people from Sauk Rapids and nearby St. Cloud came to see the damage the plane caused on Saturday.