A small plane crashed in the lot of a General Mills plant in Georgia shortly after takeoff Thursday evening, killing all aboard, authorities said.

       The plane took off from the Covington Municipal Airport around 6:45 p.m., Covington Police Department Captain Ken Malcom said during a press briefing.

       Witnesses told police it appeared that the aircraft, believed to be a Cessna twin-engine propeller plane, was having trouble gaining altitude and that it sounded like there was engine trouble.

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       Malcom said the plane then suddenly veered and crashed into the lot of the General Mills plant, located about a mile from the airport. The plane went down in an isolated area that stored tractor-trailers, some of which caught fire, he said.

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       There were no survivors, Malcom said. It is unclear how many people were aboard the plane, and police are working to determine who the victims are, he said.

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       No one was injured on the ground, according to Malcom, who noted that many lives were potentially saved since the plane didn't crash directly into the plant.

       Fire personnel was still working to put out the fire at the scene several hours after the crash.

       The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident.

       ABC News' Darren Reynolds contributed to this report.