A privately owned Cessna 172 aircraft, registration 5Y-CDC, crashed on Friday near Kwa-Chocha, adjacent to Royal Plaza in Malindi.
Details obtained by Kenyans.co.ke indicated that the aircraft, which was en route to Wilson Airport, went down at around 2:50 pm.
Videos shared with the publication showed the plane engulfed in flames as firefighters worked to contain the situation.
It was reported that the flight crew on board were safe and sustained no injuries, although, tragically, there were at least three fatalities.
The bodies of the three were seen lying on the side of the road, not far from the wreckage of the plane.
A motorcycle, reportedly the one they were riding, was found lying on the ground nearby.
The plane is said to have landed near a new hotel that was yet to open, close to where several motorcycles were parked. Videos shared with Kenyans.co.ke showed parts of nearby buildings along the highway had also caught fire.
First responders, including firefighters and ambulances, were at the scene. Photos shared with this publication showed hundreds of residents gathered to witness the incident.
The accident caused a significant traffic snarl-up along the busy highway.
The cause of the crash and the number of people on board the plane were not immediately known.
Over the past year, three other plane crashes had been reported. Among them was the crash in April 2023 that claimed the lives of the Chief of Defence Forces, General Francis Ogolla, and nine other military officers.
On September 16 2023, a chartered flight carrying ten passengers and one crew member crashed during takeoff in Migori. Fortunately, no injuries or fatalities were reported.
In March, a commercial plane, a De Havilland Canada Dash 8, collided mid-air with a Cessna 172M training aircraft over Nairobi National Park. The Dash 8 returned safely to Wilson Airport with all 44 passengers unharmed. Tragically, the Cessna crashed, killing both occupants.