CNN has reported that a 7 year-old Sailor Gutzler has survived a plane crash that killed her parents, sister and cousin. Not only did Sailor survived but also walked the rough terrain of a forest in Kentucky; in extremely cold weather till she found a house where she was rescued.
CNN reports that Larry Wilkins, the man who harboured the little Sailor till help came was alerted by his two dachshunds after he heard a faint on his door.
“Larry Wilkins went to his door and opened it to see a young girl — her lips quivering, her nose bloodied, her arms and legs scratched up.
And, somehow, still alive.
‘She told me that her mom and dad were dead,’ Wilkins said of the girl, Sailor Gutzler. ‘And that she had been in a plane crash.’
Sailor was barefoot except for one sock and was dressed for Florida — shorts, no coat — not for slogging through the January cold of Kentucky. Wilkins got her on his couch and called 911, alerting authorities that a plane had gone down and there was at least one survivor.
Kentucky State Police troopers arrived in about 10 minutes. Sgt. Dean Patterson said the girl was taken to a local hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
“She’s a terribly brave little girl, I’ll tell you that,” Wilkins said. “I can’t imagine a 7-year-old doing that.”
Kentucky State Police identified the dead early Saturday as Marty Gutzler, 48; Kimberly Gutzler, 46; and 9-year-old Piper Gutzler — a husband, wife and their daughter. Also killed was 14-year-old Sierra Wilder, the survivor’s cousin. All were from Nashville, Illinois, a community of just over 3,000 people.
Wilkins says he believes Sailor saw his street lights through the woods and, thankfully, found him — in one of only three homes in his neighborhood that are occupied in winter. White, the Lyon County executive, said the fact she went that way “saved her life.”
‘Any other direction could have ended badly with the cold weather,’ he said.
Sailor was released from Lourdes Hospital in Paducah just after 1 a.m. Saturday, state police said.
Thinking about what the 7-year-old went through and what comes next brings tears to Wilkins’ eyes, he said.
‘I just feel so sorry for that little girl, I can’t understand it,” Wilkins said. “I just can’t imagine (going through) that, for someone that young.'”
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vrqn4pXm9A&w=640&h=390]
Source [News; Photos & Video]: CNN
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