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Teen Crash Survivor Clung to Floating Wreckage for 13 Hours

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 1, 2009 7:31 AM CDT

(Newser) – The 14-year-old girl who appears to be the lone survivor of yesterday’s Yemenia Airlines crash is recovering and in no danger, the BBC reports. Bahia Bakari escaped the crash with just a few cuts to her face and a fractured collarbone, though she can barely swim, and wasn't wearing a life vest. "It is a true miracle," a French official tells the AP. "She held onto a piece of the plane from 1:30am to 3pm."

“She’s a very timid girl, I never thought she would escape like that,” says her father, who spoke with her on the phone yesterday. “She said, 'Daddy, I don’t know what happened, but the plane fell into the water and I found myself in the water ... surrounded by darkness. I couldn’t see anyone.' ” Rescuers found her 13 hours later. “We tried to throw a life buoy. She could not grab it," one rescuer said. "I had to jump in the water to get her.”

Some hundreds of Comorans gather outside the El Maruf Hospital in Moroni, Tuesday, June 30, 2009, after news that a Yemenia Airbus passenger plane crashed into the Indian Ocean.
Some hundreds of Comorans gather outside the El Maruf Hospital in Moroni, Tuesday, June 30, 2009, after news that a Yemenia Airbus passenger plane crashed into the Indian Ocean.   (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)
Yemeni passengers are seen at San'a International airport Tuesday, June 30, 2009 in San'a, Yemen.
Yemeni passengers are seen at San'a International airport Tuesday, June 30, 2009 in San'a, Yemen.   (AP Photo)
Yemeni aviation workers put up a board showing information related to the Yemenia (Yemen Airways) plane crash, at the airport in San'a, Yemen Tuesday, June 30, 2009.
Yemeni aviation workers put up a board showing information related to the Yemenia (Yemen Airways) plane crash, at the airport in San'a, Yemen Tuesday, June 30, 2009.   (AP Photo)
Rescuers at Galawa Beach, 22 miles from Moroni, Comoros, Wednesday, July, 1, 2009 search for survivors and wreckage from a crashed Yemenia Airbus 310 jet.
Rescuers at Galawa Beach, 22 miles from Moroni, Comoros, Wednesday, July, 1, 2009 search for survivors and wreckage from a crashed Yemenia Airbus 310 jet.   (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)
The only survivor of the Yemenia jet crash, 14-year-old Bahia Bakari, is seen through the window of the room where she is being cared for at the El Maaruf Hospital in Moroni, Comoros, Wednesday, July, 1, 2009.
The only survivor of the Yemenia jet crash, 14-year-old Bahia Bakari, is seen through the window of the room where she is being cared for at the El Maaruf Hospital in Moroni, Comoros, Wednesday, July,...   (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)
Surrounded by bodyguards French Minister for Cooperation and Francophony, Alain Joyandet, third from right, blue tie, arrives at the El Maaruf Hospital in Moroni, Comoros, Wednesday, July 1, 2009.
Surrounded by bodyguards French Minister for Cooperation and Francophony, Alain Joyandet, third from right, blue tie, arrives at the El Maaruf Hospital in Moroni, Comoros, Wednesday, July 1, 2009.   (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)
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COMMENTS
Showing 1 of 1 comment
lonewolf17
Jul 2, 2009 3:36 AM CDT
Unbreakable, anyone?

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