A man and young boy were killed when a plane crashed in Ireland, minutes after 16 parachutists jumped from the aircraft.
The pilot, believed to be from the UK, and a seven-year-old local boy were onboard when the plane went down in bog land in County Offaly on Sunday afternoon.
The cause of the crash remains unknown and an investigation is underway.
A Garda spokesman said: “All 16 parachutists made their jump from the craft.
“However, witnesses then saw the aircraft crash shortly afterwards. There were two people on board, the pilot and a seven-year-old boy.”
The light aircraft left the Clonbullogue Airfield – operated by the Irish Parachute Club – at around 2:25pm, before the plane was found in a bog 2km away from the airport.
“It just came vertically down,” said Jimmy Slattery, who was walking his dog near Clonbullogue, in comments reported by the Irish Times from the scene of the crash.
“There was no wavering in it or anything, flat out, the engine roaring. When it got near the tree line, I heard a thump then and that was it, that’s all I can say. That’s all I know. I thought he was actually doing a stunt and I was waiting for them to pull out but it never happened, sadly.”
He then called 999 and waited at the scene to direct the emergency services to the crash site.
“It was loud, very loud as if it was taking off, that sort of a roar,” he said, describing the moment the aircraft crashed “like a torpedo” from the sky.
It is understood that the Air Accident Investigation Unit used digging machinery in an attempt to remove the aircraft from the bog because the impact of the crash had driven it into the ground.
Members of the Civil Defence, Offaly Fire Services and Garda were first to attend the scene, along with local residents.
Edenderry-based independent Councillor Noel Cribbin told the Irish Times that the whole community is in a state of shock at news of the accident.
“The Irish Parachute Club is over 20 years in Edenderry and run to the highest standards, so it was a big shock to hear of an accident of this type,” he said.
The crash is the latest light aircraft tragedy to strike Ireland. Two people died in County Antrim on 19 April while another plane enthusiast died on May 4 in Ballina.
