GROVER HILL, Ohio — Three people are presumed dead in the crash Thursday of a single-engine airplane near the Paulding County village of Grover Hill.

Paulding County Sheriff Jason K. Landers said he had no confirmation of the victims' identities because of the severity of impact when the plane, flying from Iowa to Findlay, went down in a field about 6 p.m. near county roads 60 and 137 in Latty Township.

The crash left a significant crater in the ground. No large pieces of wreckage were visible.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board had representatives at the scene Friday.

Witnesses told the sheriff's office they saw flames from the plane before it struck the field, Sheriff Landers said.

Grover Hill is about 75 miles southwest of Toledo.

First Published November 8, 2014, 5:00 a.m.