'No people alive' after plane crash in Costa Rica

Ten foreigners among 12 killed as authorities probe cause of disaster

This photo released by Costa Rica's Public Safety Ministry shows the site of the crash (Costa Rica's Public Safety Ministry via AP)

At least 12 people — most of them foreign tourists — died when a plane crashed in Costa Rica, according to government officials.

Officials told the Associated Press that 10 US citizens and two crew members were killed in the crash, a cause for which was still not known.

“There are no people alive,” Security Minister Gustavo Mata told Reuters.

Photos and video released by Costa Rica’s Ministry of Foreign Security showed flames smouldering in a forest near blackened and twisted chunks of the aircraft.

The plane was operated by a private carrier called Nature Air.

The crash occurred in Guanacaste, according to the ministry, an area in western Costa Rica that is known for its beaches and contains a national park.

Victims had not yet been identified, but former Costa Rican president Laura Chinchilla Miranda said on Twitter that her cousin was among the dead.