KANSAS CITY, MO — Two people were killed early Saturday in a violent crash near 27th Street and Jackson Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri, after police say a silver Toyota Camry was traveling at a high rate of speed and left the roadway.

The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department said witnesses saw the car become airborne as it approached 27th Street. It then struck a fence and the porch of a home on the west side of the street before hitting a tree and stopping in the roadway.

Police said the vehicle caught fire after the collision. Both the driver and passenger were thrown from the car and died at the scene.

Police describe a high-speed run before the crash

Kansas City police said the Camry was heading south on Jackson Avenue when the crash unfolded. According to investigators, the speed of the vehicle appears to have been a major factor in how far the car traveled after it left the road.

Witnesses told police the car went airborne near the intersection with 27th Street. That detail suggests the vehicle had already lost contact with the pavement before striking property along the block.

Police have not said what led up to the loss of control or whether any other vehicles were involved. The crash remains under investigation.

Fence, porch and tree were struck along the block

After leaving the roadway, the Camry hit a fence and then the porch of a home on the west side of Jackson Avenue, according to KCPD. The vehicle then struck a tree on its right side before coming to rest in the street.

That sequence left a trail of damage across the area, showing how quickly the crash developed once the car departed the roadway. Police have not released information about the extent of damage to the home or surrounding property.

Officials did say the car caught fire before the scene was secured. The fire added another layer of danger for anyone nearby in the moments after impact.

Driver and passenger were not wearing seat belts

Investigators said neither person in the car was wearing a seat belt. Both the driver and passenger were ejected from the vehicle during the crash.

KCPD said both people died at the scene. Police have not yet released their names, and no additional details about their ages were provided in the information released Sunday.

Seat belts are designed to keep occupants inside a vehicle during a collision, and police routinely note whether they were being used when crashes turn fatal. In this case, officers said the lack of seat belt use was part of the crash circumstances they documented.

South Jackson Avenue intersection sits in a residential area

The crash happened near the intersection of 27th Street and Jackson Avenue, a residential stretch where a vehicle leaving the road can quickly reach fences, porches and trees close to the street. Police identified the site as the west side of Jackson Avenue.

Early morning crashes can leave little time for nearby residents to react, especially when speed and fire are involved. KCPD has not said whether anyone inside the home was injured or whether other people were present outside at the time.

Investigators are still working to piece together the full sequence of events. For now, police say the crash claimed two lives and involved a vehicle that was moving fast enough to become airborne before the fatal impact.