CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. — Nine people are now confirmed dead after a Puerto Rico Air National Guard C-130 plane crashed on a Georgia highway near the Savannah Airport in Chatham County, according to the county deputy coroner.
>>TRENDING: Southwest plane forced to land because of busted window
The plane went down at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday at the intersection of Hwy. 21 and Gulfstream Rd. The area has been shutdown as emergency crews work the scene. Nine people were on board the aircraft.
No one on the ground was killed.
>> 60-year-old C-130 that crashed in Georgia was on final trip
The highway in the area of the crash could be closed for weeks according to Bilbo.
An eyewitness told CNN that the pilot of the plane made efforts to avoid the truck he was driving, carrying hazardous materials.
"The guy is a hero he barely made it over the tree line looked as if he tried to turn and nose dive straight in to the ground right in front of me ," Roger Best told CNN.
The C-130 plane is a military cargo plane. The Savannah Morning News reports the plane was from the Air National Guard 165th Airlift Wing.
A statement from the Savannah Air National Guard said the plane was conducting a training mission when it went down.
Savannah Hilton International Airport told our sister station WSB-TV that flights in the area may be impacted by the crash.
>>MORE DETAILS: Atlanta's WSB live updates on plane crash
The C-130 is a smaller cargo plane than the C-17 cargo plane often seen flying over the Miami Valley after takeoff from Wright Patterson Air Force Base.