TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A military plane loaded with Iranian journalists crashed into a 10-story apartment building Tuesday as the pilot attempted an emergency landing after developing engine trouble. At least 115 people died, the Tehran police chief said.

The C-130, a four-engine turboprop, crashed in the Azari suburb of Tehran, site of the Towhid apartment complex that is home to air force personnel and near Tehran’s Mehrabad airport.

Before firefighters extinguished the blaze, flames roared from the roof and windows in several of the upper floors. Panicked residents fled the building. Police held back a crowd of thousands, many of them screaming and weeping that they had to find friends or loved ones who were in the building.

Scuffles broke out and police beat back onlookers and those trying to reach the building to keep the way open for emergency vehicles.

Several hours after the crash, the building still was smoldering, with black smoke hanging in the air.

‘‘It was like an earthquake,’’ said Reza Sadeqi, a 25-year-old merchant who saw the plane hit the building. He said he was thrown about nine feet inside his shop by the force of the crash.