Two people are dead and police are appealing for information after a light aircraft plunged into the ground at a rural property south of Brisbane, sparking a fast‑moving grass fire and a massive emergency response.

The Beech A36 Bonanza went down in a paddock after 11am on Monday, with shocked residents raising the alarm as smoke billowed across paddocks.

Crews were called to a grass fire just after 11am and arrived to find plane debris scattered on the Chambers Flat property and flames racing through dry grass, authorities said.

At least a dozen fire trucks and multiple crews worked to contain the blaze, which burned close to a farmhouse before being brought under control about 12.50pm.

No homes were damaged, and police are yet to confirm how many people were on board the plane.

A Queensland Ambulance Service spokesperson said no patients have been treated.

Police cordoned off the crash site and have established a crime scene.

“At this really early stage in the investigation, I can’t comment on the persons within the plane. And I can say our notification of next of kin is still under way,” Logan District Officer Chief Superintendent Mel Adams said.

“As you can understand, this is a really sensitive matter, and we won’t comment further on those persons that lost their lives today.”

The plane left nearby Archerfield Airport shortly before 11am on Monday and crashed only minutes later.

“As to what happened whilst that aircraft was in the air, we have no information at this time,” Adams said.

“What I would ask is for anybody who heard the aircraft, saw the aircraft, in the air before it crashed in the Stockleigh area over the Chambers Flat area, for anybody that may have witnessed the aircraft hit the ground – it was close to a roadway, perhaps there is vehicle dashcam or something of that nature – please, as a matter of priority, contact police.”

She said it was a confronting scene for first-responders, although the fire was quickly extinguished.

Paramedics and firefighters remained at the scene on Monday afternoon.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has been notified and has sent investigators to the crash site. It has also appealed for any relevant footage.

-with AAP