CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine (AP) -- A man has died after a small airplane crashed and sank into Casco Bay off a park in Cape Elizabeth.

The Portland Press Herald said a man believed to be the pilot died shortly after the plane crashed into the water near the rocky shore at Fort Williams Park around noon and sank almost immediately. It was not clear how many people were on board, and dozens of boats were involved in a search-and-rescue effort.

Witnesses said they saw a man emerge from the plane after the crash and hold onto a flotation device, but he appeared to lose consciousness.

He was pulled aboard a boat and was taken by emergency crews to a local hospital. An official told the newspaper the man later died there. His name was not available.