A business jet crashed Thursday at a regional airport in North Carolina used by NASCAR teams and Fortune 500 companies, erupting in a large fire and killing multiple people, authorities said.

"I can confirm there were fatalities," Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said, though he declined to say how many.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which is investigating the crash alongside the National Transportation Safety Board, told CBS News that there were six people on the plane. It was not immediately known whether anyone survived, CBS affiliate WBTV reported.

The Cessna C550 crashed while landing at Statesville Regional Airport around 10:20 a.m. Thursday, according to the FAA. A picture of the plane showed it engulfed in a large fire.

Flight tracking records show that a Cessna 550 that departed from Statesville Regional Airport just after 10 a.m. is owned by a private North Carolina company, according to WBTV. The private company is affiliated with Greg Biffle, a retired NASCAR driver, the station reported, citing business records.

It is unclear who was on the plane when it crashed.

In a social media post, the airport confirmed there was an "aircraft incident" and said the FAA was en route to investigate. The airport is closed under further notice, said airport director John Ferguson. 

Ferguson said it would "take some time to get the debris off the runway to get it safe again." He added that the airport had no information about what caused the crash. AccuWeather said there were clouds and some drizzle at the time.

The airport says on its website that Statesville Regional Airport, which is about 45 minutes north of Charlotte, provides corporate aviation facilities for Fortune 500 companies and several NASCAR teams. 

Golfers playing next to the airport were shocked as they witnessed the disaster, even dropping to the ground at the Lakewood Golf Club while the plane was overhead. The ninth hole was covered with debris.

"We were like, 'Oh my gosh! That's way too low,'" said Joshua Green of Mooresville. "It was scary."

A flight path available on FlightAware, a flight tracking website, appears to show that the plane departed then looped back toward the airport.

The plane had planned to fly later from Sarasota, Florida, to Treasure Cay International Airport in the Bahamas before returning to Fort Lauderdale and then back to Statesville by the evening, according to data posted by FlightAware. 

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.