Two people were killed Friday when a small plane crashed on a major avenue in Brazil's economic capital Sao Paulo, narrowly escaping heavy traffic and skidding into a bus, authorities said.

The plane, carrying two people, slid hundreds of meters along the avenue, passing in front of a queue of dozens of vehicles waiting at a traffic light, according to images shown in local media.

It then hit a bus and exploded, firefighter chief Ronaldo Melo told journalists.

The pilot and a passenger were killed in the accident, which happened shortly after the King Air F90 took off from the Campo de Marte airport, which handles domestic flights.

Six people were injured, said Melo.

The passengers of the bus managed to escape, some of whom were left with "bruises." A passing motorcyclist also fell and received medical attention.

Images broadcast on local television showed thick plumes of smoke billowing into the air, however firefighters quickly got the blaze under control.

Investigators are at the scene "taking photos and interviewing people who witnessed the aircraft crash" to establish the circumstances of the accident, Melo said.

He said it was unclear if the plane had been attempting an emergency landing at the time of the accident.

Brazil has seen several dramatic small plane crashes in recent months.

According to statistics from the Centre for Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (CENIPA), there were 20 aircraft accidents in January, with eight people killed.

These mainly involved agricultural aircraft and private planes.

In 2024, the country recorded the highest number of aircraft accidents in the last 10 years, with 175 crashes and 152 deaths.

Last August, Brazil suffered its worst air tragedy in 17 years, when a plane crashed in the city of Vinhedo in Sao Paulo state, killing all 62 on board.

At least 34 people, including two babies were killed when a contraband fuel depot exploded into flames in southern Benin near the border with Nigeria on Saturday.

According to Beninese Interior Minister Alassane Seidou, “a serious fire occurred in the town of Seme Podji. Another 20 people were seriously wounded in the incident.”

"I can't really give you the cause of the fire, but there is a large gasoline warehouse here and cars, tricycles and motorcycles come from morning to evening,” he added.

Nigeria is a main oil and gas producer where fuel smuggling is very common along its borders, particularly when the government maintains a subsidy to keep fuel prices low.

The majority of the victims were burnt and they could not be not be identified.

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