Gulf | Yemen
The great survivor of Yemenia plane crash
A bruised teenage girl clung to the wreckage of a Yemeni plane for more than 13 hours before rescuers found her floating in the Indian Ocean, a French official said on Wednesday.
- AP
- Published: 22:52 July 1, 2009
Comoros: A bruised teenage girl clung to the wreckage of a Yemeni plane for more than 13 hours before rescuers found her floating in the Indian Ocean, a French official said on Wednesday.
There was no word on any other survivors, but French officials said one of the plane's black boxes had been found. The Yemenia Airbus 310 jet carrying 153 people to the island nation of Comoros crashed into the sea early Tuesday as it attempted to land in the dark amid howling winds.
An Associated Press reporter saw 14-year-old Bahia Bakri in a Comoros hospital as she was visited by government officials. She was conscious with bruises on her face and a gauze bandage on her elbow.
"It is a true miracle. She is a courageous young girl," Alain Joyandet, France's Minister for International Cooperation, said at the hospital. "She held onto a piece of the plane from 1.30am to 3pm."
Qasim Bakri, the girl's father, told French radio that his daughter was "fragile" and could "barely swim" but managed to hang on.
He said he spoke with his daughter by phone after Tuesday's crash. Bahia had left Paris on Monday night with her mother to see family in the Comoros.
He said she was ejected and found herself beside the plane. "I asked her what happened and she said, 'We saw the plane fall in the water. I found myself in the water. I couldn't see anything. Daddy, I couldn't swim very well. I grabbed on to something but I don't know what'," Bakri said. "She's a very timid girl, I never thought she would escape like that."
Related Links
- Bodies recovered from plane crash
- Victims of plane crash to get money
- Interactive: Comoros air disaster
- Pilot may have survived Yemenia plane crash
- 'France had banned Yemenia plane'
- Sea rescue saved teen after Yemenia crash
- Yemenia plane crashes into sea
- A310 largely used as freight carrier across the world
- Link between two crashes ruled out
- Talk of airliner's age can be misleading
News Editor's choice
-
Ukraine leaders fight over Russian language
Violence erupts in Ukraine parliament over a bill to allow use of Russian language in courts, hospitals
-
CBSE: 100% success in many UAE schools
6,000 students from 53 schools meet grade expectations in examinations
-
'I can’t believe he is not going to come back'
Seventeen-year-old boy went missing in Dubai during a visit from Pakistan
