2 killed in plane crash in southwestern Colorado near Dolores Peak

Two people were killed in a small plane crash in southwestern Colorado near Dolores Peak on Thursday. According to the San Miguel County Sheriff's Office, a plume of white smoke was reported about 3:24 p.m. on the north side of Dolores Peak near Telluride. 

Sheriff's deputies and the Telluride Fire Protection District were notified at 3:30 p.m. that the Telluride Regional Airport had lost contact with the nearby Cessna at that same location. The two men were flying in a Cessna T206 while working for Vexall Imaging Inc., collecting aerial data for surveying. 

Investigators said they had completed their surveying task in Grand Junction and were on their way back to Belen, New Mexico when the plane went down. 

Randy Ramirez, 34, of Jupiter, Florida and Belen, New Mexico, has been identified as the pilot and Blake Klobuchar, 20, of Peralta, New Mexico as the camera mapping operator.     

What happened leading up to the crash is being investigated.