A Waterloo pilot is recovering Monday morning after a single-engine plane crashed in Monroe County, Illinois. The small plane crashed into a field off of Dd Road on Sunday, causing the plane to immediately burst into flames.

A 71-year-old small plane pilot sustained critical injuries in a crash Sunday afternoon in rural Monroe County, Illinois.

The pilot, a 71-year-old man from Waterloo, Illinois, was airlifted to a St. Louis-area hospital for treatment of critical injuries.

A woman died Thursday after a crash Wednesday night in Monroe County. Lehigh County Coroner Daniel A. Buglio said in a news release that Dorothy Desbiens, 86, of Middle Smithfield Township, died Thursday night at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg.

The Monroe County Sheriff’s Department is recognizing the heroic actions taken after a plane crash over the weekend.