Five people are feared dead, after the wreckage of a small plane, which went missing on Wednesday morning was found on a beach near the town of Lockhart River in far north Queensland.
Lockhart River mayor Wayne Butcher said he believed there were no survivors of the accident.
“The crash site is on the beach, we have closed the road and the police are going to work," he told the Australian.
“It is all government workers out of Cairns on a charter, we don’t know the department.
“We had the low come over at 10am, there was a lot of rain and bugger all visibility.’’
The Bureau of Meteorology has warned of high winds and flooding rains in the area due to a tropical low, which is expected to develop into a cyclone, over the Coral Sea later in the week.
Emergency services were called when the plane - a Cessna 404- went missing on Wednesday morning, sparking a search by two helicopters and a rescue jet from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
It is understood that the aircraft belongs to Perth-based charter company Aeroshire.
