YELLOWKNIFE - Bystanders tried desperately to save the lives of two pilots Thursday after the bush plane they were flying crashed in an empty lot between two buildings on a Yellowknife street.

But their efforts were in vain. Witnesses say both died in the crash. Seven passengers were taken to hospital.

The plane, an Arctic Sunwest Charters Twin Otter which was equipped to land on water, went down after 1 p.m. in a part of town near Great Slave Lake. It crashed near the float plane docks, not far from the Bush Pilot's Monument.

Debbie Doody, co-owner of the Dancing Moose Cafe across the street from the crash, was in the kitchen when several of her customers saw the plane go down.

"He crashed into the skirt of the building across the street with his wing and then he just did a total 360 turn and he landed in the parking lot," Doody said. "It was really terrifying.

"It was just a huge crash, kind of like thunder. I can't really explain it. We all just jumped.

"The ladies sitting there in the restaurant, they saw the whole plane go right by the window. They jumped up and screamed and there was this giant crash and the power went out."

Doody and others in the restaurant grabbed towels and blankets and rushed over to see if they could help.

"We all ran over there and we pulled (the pilots) out of the plane," she said.

A bystander had to cut one of them out of the seat, said Doody. The other pilot came out more easily.

Everybody did what they could to try to save the pilots' lives, she said.

"They worked on them with CPR for a really long time. The two pilots, they didn't make it.

"It's really upsetting."

Damien Healy with Stanton Hospital confirmed two people died on scene. Of the seven passengers, two were in critical condition. The remaining five were also in hospital, but their conditions were stable. At least one of the injured was being flown to hospital in Edmonton.

Toronto-based company's workers, guests 'OK'

Don Bubar, CEO of Avalon Rare Metals, said three employees and four guests on board the plane were returning from Thor Lake, about 100 kilometres east of Yellowknife. The company is doing exploration work in the area.

"Everyone's OK that were amongst the passengers," he said from company headquarters in Toronto. "They have suffered injuries, understandably, but not life-threatening.

"I had a brief conversation with our vice-president of operations, David Swisher, who is among the injured, and he sounded fine and he assured me that everyone was in stable condition."

Bubar said Swisher did not talk to him about the crash.

"We're just very thankful that it wasn't worse than it was in terms of number of injuries and severity. Obviously, we are upset about the loss of life involving the pilots of the aircraft."

The Transportation Safety Board said it was sending two investigators to the site.

A woman who answered the phone at the Arctic Sunwest office was distraught and declined comment.