|
Autumn Veatch,
16, had been flying with her step-grandparents from Montana to
Washington on Saturday when the plane went down in the rocky,
remote area, the newspaper reported, quoting transportation
officials.
The teenager told authorities she survived the impact and tried
to pull her step-grandparents out of the fuselage but was
unsuccessful, the Seattle Times reported.
Veatch, who attends high school in Washington state and had
little outdoor training, waited at the wreckage scene before
deciding to try and hike out of the rugged terrain to seek help,
a family friend told the newspaper.
She followed drainage to a river, which eventually led to a
trail, and then to a state highway, the newspaper said.
Hikers gave her a ride to a nearby store where she was met by
medics.
She had not had anything to eat in three days, the Seattle Times
said, quoting a first responder. She was hospitalized with
non-life-threatening injuries but was suffering from dehydration
and exposure to the elements.
Authorities were still looking for the wreckage of the small
plane. The fate of her step-grandparents was not clear.
(Reporting by Victoria Cavaliere in Los Angeles; Editing by Paul
Tait)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
|
|
