KENOVA -- According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the plane was a twin-engine Piper PA-34 registered to Wesvin Inc. of Wilmington, Delaware. The Piper PA-34 aircraft is configured to seat six.

Tower controllers at Tri-State Airport in Wayne County tell the National Weather Service they lost radar contact with the plane about three miles southeast of Tri-State Airport. That is in the area of the intersection of Route 75 and Plymale Branch Road near Lavelette.

Walter Stroud lives near the crash site. He was in his garage this afternoon and heard the plane fly very low over his home. He went outside and saw the plane bank hard for a turn before it hit a high-voltage power line and burst into a fireball. Stroud says he lost sight of the plane as it disappeared over the trees.

At the time the plane went down, the National Weather Service reports wind out of the west at 5 mph, visibility was 2 miles with light snow and the broken cloud deck was at 1000 feet. The temperature at the time was 27 degrees.

Route 75 was closed for about an hour, but has now re-opened. Traffic is moving slowly, however, drivers are blocked from Plymale Branch Road.

Emergency crews were quick to respond. West Virginia State Police and Wayne County Sheriffs deputies have secured the area. Volunteer firefighters from Ceredo, Kenova, Lavalette and England Hill are also on scene. Power crews are also there trying to deal with the downed power lines. Workers from the West Virginia Division of Highways have been working to clear Plymale Branch Road so crews can get to the crash site.