A small plane with 18 people on board crashed during take-off on Sunday, coming down in a residential area of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The flight was operated by local company Busy Bee and was en route to Beni with 16 passengers and two crew on board. Both cities are in North Kivu province.

At least 24 people were killed in the crash, according to local officials and rescue workers.

Smoke rises from the wreckage of a small plane which crashed on takeoff into a densely populated area of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo pic.twitter.com/31BXU7qrG0 — AFP news agency (@AFP) November 24, 2019 *URGENT*Crash d'avion ce matin à l'aéroport international de Goma d'un appareil de la compagnie Busy Bee qui quittait Goma pour Beni avec à son bord 17 passagers, avant de rater son décollage pour s'écraser sur des maisons au q/ Mapendo. pic.twitter.com/yB2lNfeoWN — Bambole Papy Joseph (@JosephBambole) November 24, 2019

One eyewitness told reporters that at least two people were rescued from the wreckage before it exploded.

It’s not clear yet how many people on the ground were injured or killed in the crash.

#RDc: Pour l’instant, les causes du crash d’un petit porteur à Goma ne sont pas encore connues. pic.twitter.com/4OBfhxQXyL — Fidele kitsa (@fidele_kitsa) November 24, 2019

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