A pilot participating in efforts to combat the Gold Mountain wildfire died Sunday after the aircraft he was operating crashed in the Silver Jack Reservoir in the state of Colorado, authorities reported.

The Gunnison County Sheriff's Office confirmed that the pilot's body was recovered by the Montrose County Sheriff's Office dive team after the plane crashed into the water during a firefighting mission.

At this time, the identity of the victim has not been revealed, as authorities continue to notify his next of kin.

The accident occurred during operations against the Gold Mountain Fire

The accident was reported around 5:17 p.m. Sunday, when the Gunnison Regional Communications Center received a call alerting about an aircraft down in the Silver Jack Reservoir, located in southwest Gunnison County.

Authorities reported that the plane was assigned to operations to control the Gold Mountain fire and that the pilot was the only person on board.

Sheriff's teams, investigators and water rescue specialists responded to the scene to recover the aircraft and the pilot's body.

They investigate the causes of the accident

For now, authorities have not determined what caused the accident.

The investigation remains open while the competent agencies analyze the circumstances that led to the crash of the aircraft during the fire extinguishing efforts.

The Gold Mountain Fire had consumed approximately 35,600 acres as of Sunday and was barely at 5% containment, according to the Interagency Wildfire Air Quality Response Program.

Authorities warned that the fire will continue to be active for the next few days and that changes in wind direction could move the smoke to different communities in the state.

Additionally, an alert remains in effect for poor air quality due to smoke from wildfires in areas of central, southern and western Colorado.

Authorities indicated that they will provide additional information about the accident once the notification process to the pilot's family is completed.