Authorities say at least three people are dead after a small plane crashed into a house in Flagler County.

The Florida Highway Patrol confirmed the deaths Friday afternoon. The victims were not immediately identified.

The plane hit a home on Utica Path, about 1 mile east of the Flagler County Airport, at 2:22 p.m.

Nearby Seminole Woods Boulevard was shut down near Utah Place, the entrance to the neighborhood.

According to the Flagler County Sheriff's Office, the pilot of the plane declared an emergency around 2:10 p.m., saying the plane was severely shaking.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the Beechcraft BE35, which had three people onboard, had been heading to Downtown Island Airport in Knoxville, Tenn., but diverted to the Flagler County Airport. FAA officials didn't immediately know where the plane took off.

The plane then hit the home a few minutes after the pilot's call.

An FHP spokesperson said the pilot radioed in that they saw smoke and there was some commotion in the last transmission. An air traffic controller said the plane had entered a bad weather area, he added.

Neighbors said they heard a loud boom as the plane came crashing into the roof of the single-story home.  Armando Gonzalez described feeling a rumble in the ground and seeing the plane take a nose-dive into the house.

The house caught fire, but deputies said the homeowner, identified as Susan Crockett, managed to get out safely by climbing through a window. She was taken to Florida Hospital Flagler, where she was said to be in stable condition.

Crockett's daughter, Jessica, said God saved her mother.

"It's nothing but God. The fact that my mom survived. The fact that she was able to get out. My mom is a strong woman and she, nothing will shake her because she has faith in God," said Jessica.

When Susan ran out of the house, another neighbor was there to comfort her.

"She was screaming and she was real nervous. I really feel sorry for her," said Gonzalez.

The Flagler County Sheriff's Office had reported earlier that there were as many as three people inside the home, but that has been updated to just one -- the homeowner.

Other homes in the immediate area were evacuated, and Utica Path remained closed to all traffic.

Residents in the neighborhood said they were used to hearing planes flying overhead, but were now nervous another crash could happen.

Preliminary Report from Florida Highway Patrol

The Florida Highway Patrol is currently conducting a preliminary plane crash investigation while awaiting the arrival of the FAA and NTSB. There are three deceased at the scene. Preliminary information indicates that the plane was traveling from Ft. Pierce, FL to Knoxville, TN. The aircraft was registered out of the British Virgin Islands.

The pilot reported having engine trouble, saw smoke, and then entered an area of bad weather. Shortly thereafter, the 911 calls began at the Flagler County Sheriff's Office regarding a plane crashing into a house at 22 Utica Path, in the Seminole Woods Subdivision of Palm Coast.

Only portions of the wing remained and it appears the plane made a steep decent prior to entering the roof of the home.

A fire ensued and consumed the remainder of the plane and a great portion of the house. One resident of the home, Susan Crockett, in her bedroom at the time of the crash, had to escape through the window. She has been treated at a local hospital and has been released.

FAA and NTSB are expected at the scene this evening and will again be on scene tomorrow. Any questions information regarding the cause of the crash should be asked of these entities following their arrival.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.