3 Americans killed in China plane crash

SHANGHAI, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Three Americans were killed and one hurt when their cargo plane burned and crashed at Shanghai's Pudong Airport, Chinese state media reported Saturday.

The government-run Chinese news agency Xinhua said that the Zimbabwe-registered plane caught fire, left the runway and then crashed into a storage building, creating a fiery maelstrom.

The BBC said Shanghai television carried reports indicating the plane's tail broke off into several parts and fell to the ground. Scores of firefighters responded to the scene, where thick clouds of black smoke were billowing into the sky, local reports said.

Four other crew members were reportedly injured in the crash of the Kyrgyzstan-bound plane.

The U.S. Embassy in Beijing confirmed that the three fatalities were U.S. residents, as was one of the injured, the BBC said.