Updated

Two people are presumed dead in the crash of a small plane whose wreckage was found Sunday in the southern Colorado mountains, Costilla County sheriff's officials said.

The Beechcraft Baron, registered to a party in Canada, landed in Pueblo around 6:15 p.m. Saturday to refuel before heading to Santa Fe, N.M., sheriff's Sgt. James Chavez said. The Federal Aviation Administration alerted sheriff's officials after losing contact with the plane around 10 p.m. Saturday.

Two helicopters from Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., found the crash site Sunday in the Culebra mountain range near Las Animas County but couldn't land because of high winds, Chavez said. Efforts to reach the site by ground were called off Sunday as the weather deteriorated.

Recovery efforts were to resume Monday.

Chavez did not know what caused the crash. He said the FAA had contact with the plane when it was at 12,800 feet but that the plane was reported to be dropping rapidly.

Sheriff's officials did not believe there were any survivors. "The scene is pretty bad," Chavez said. "It's in bad shape."

The victims' identities weren't being released until their families could be notified.

Details on the plane were not available Sunday night.