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Yemenia Air Plane Crash | 07/01/2009 8:55 am

Black Box Found After Yemen Airline Crash; 'Miracle' 14-Year-Old Survivor Couldn't Even Swim Well

Young Bahia Bakari was ejected from the plane when it hit the Indian Ocean, and she grabbed on to something and literally held on for dear life.
By The staff at wowOwow.com

The black box of the Yemenia Air plane that crashed into the Indian Ocean has been found, which means investigators may soon have a better idea of what caused the horrific tragedy off the coast of Comoros. But amid the sadness, more news is coming out today about the ordeal of the only survivor found so far — a 14-year-old girl.

French Cooperation Minister Alain Joyandet said the black box, or data recorder, was found by an aerial patrol 40 kilometers from Grande Comore Island. It’s just one of two such black boxes originally on the plane. Searchers are not only looking for more plane debris and the other black box, but for other possible survivors — and bodies — as well.

The lone survivor so far, Bahia Bakari, can barely swim. Her father, Kassim Bakari, said she was ejected from the plane as it hit the water, but she didn’t know what happened. He told AFP that his daughter suffered a fractured collarbone and burns to her knee, but no life-threatening injuries.

"She didn’t feel a thing. She found herself in water," Bakari told French radio station RTL. "She could hear people talking, but in the middle of the night she couldn’t see a thing. She managed to hold onto a piece of something."

Bakari’s partner — who is Bahia’s mother — was also on the flight, but has not yet been found. There were 153 people on the plane, and the search for survivors is ongoing. There were reports yesterday that a five-year-old was also rescued, but officials today say only Bahia was found alive. Although officials say they’re not giving up hope, as time goes on, chances of finding anymore survivors becomes slimmer.

5 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Kristy B
This is such a miracle.
By Kristy B on 07/01/2009 10:18 am
obinnaya martins
i was supriced at the shocking news.
By obinnaya martins on 07/01/2009 11:33 am
Laura Ward
Wonder if the location of the seat had anything to with saving her. A window seat near the wing or in the rear. Of course, there’s at least eight seats in a plane that qualify to that description. But that’s usually where survivors sit when a plane breaks up.
By Laura Ward on 07/01/2009 1:35 pm
Deena B.
I’m so glad to read that she has one surviving parent.  It really is amazing, yet terribly sad for those who perished.
By Deena B. on 07/01/2009 1:57 pm
rocky rocky
I am trying not to think "conspiracy theory" about all these planes falling from the sky … 
By rocky rocky on 07/01/2009 11:14 pm