Sunbathers Killed As Plane Makes Emergency Landing On Crowded Portugal Beach

Two people were killed Wednesday when a small plane landed on a crowded beach near Lisbon, Portugal. One 8-year-old girl and a man whose age was given as either 50 or 56 died in the incident.

The small Cessna carrying two people was apparently having some sort of technical difficulties as it skimmed down toward the beach at Caparica, about 18 miles from Lisbon. The young girl was with her parents at the beach, though neither of them was hurt in the incident. The older man was laying on a towel when the plane "passed over his legs," witnesses said.

Trending: Instagram's 'Sexiest Biker' Olga Pronina Dies In Horrific Road Crash

"A plane with two people on board made an emergency landing on Sao Joao da Caparica beach, striking two sunbathers and causing their deaths," the National Maritime Authority said in a statement.

The beach is a popular destination for summer holidays and was packed with hundreds of people Wednesday. Witnesses present at the scene said that many who saw the plane approaching ran into the sea to avoid it, according to the Telegraph.

"We don't know what happened, it is not clear yet," journalist Ricardo Conceicao told Sky News Wednesday. "We are used to seeing small planes cruising across the shore along the beach near Lisbon."

Conceicao noted that many people he spoke to were angry that the pilot would try to attempt a landing on such a crowded beach, but explained that it was certainly an emergency incident and by no means related to terrorism.

Pictures of the plane taken at the scene appear to show some sort of problem with the left wing as it was tilted lower than the right. Police arrived to rope off the area and cover the bodies shortly after the plane landed. The two people in the plane were escorted away unhurt by the police, according to the Telegraph.

Read: Plane Disappears Over Bermuda Triangle, Leaving 2 Adults And 2 Toddlers Missing

Wednesday's incident has echoes of a similar situation that occurred in Sint Marteen in July when a tourist was killed by a low flying plane. In that instance, the extremely low-flying plane was not in an emergency trouble but was instead flying its normal route to the Juliana International Airport in the Caribbean. A 57-year-old woman from New Zealand was killed after being hit by a jet blast from the Boeing 737 on the beach. The woman was thrust backward from the blast and sustained a fatal head injury.