The small Piper PA-34 reported engine trouble and lost contact with air traffic controllers as it was flying over the southwestern part of the state about 6:55 pm (local time) last night, the FAA said.
About a half hour later, a Lyon County resident called emergency services and told dispatchers that a 7-year-old girl had walked to his home and said she had been involved in a plane crash, said Sgt Dean Patterson of the Kentucky State Police.
The girl was in emotional distress and taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Patterson said. At that point, authorities launched a search for the crash site and also confirmed with the FAA that they had received a distress call.
About two hours later, authorities found the crash site in a heavily wooded area near Kentucky lake, a popular tourist attraction in the state. They discovered four bodies, including the pilot and the three passengers.
The identities of the deceased and the survivor were not immediately released. Patterson said he didn't know the girl's relationship to the people on the plane.