Plane Crash Survivor Pulled To Safety By Heroic Fellow Passenger
An East Texas woman, the sole survivor of a plane crash in Kansas, was listed in serious condition in a Kansas hospital as of Sunday afternoon, according to hospital officials.
Hanna Luce, 22, of Garden Valley, lived through the crash that killed four people Friday afternoon.
Ms. Luce's father, Ron Luce, is one of the founders of Teen Mania Ministries.
The five were flying to Council Bluffs, Iowa when their plane, a twin-engine 401 Cessna, crashed outside Chanute, Kan., which is about 120 miles southwest of Kansas City.
Ms. Luce and another man, Austin Anderson, survived the crash and walked to a nearby road to get help, according to a statement on the Teen Mania Ministries website. Both were severely injured and Anderson died as a result of his injuries Saturday morning, the statement reads.
According to a post on her father's Facebook wall dated Saturday, Ms. Luce was taken off a respirator during the weekend and skin grafts were being discussed. Ms. Luce suffered burns to 28 percent of her body, according to the statement on Teen Mania's website.
Peter Knudson, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, said the investigation into the crash could take up to 12 months, which is typical of fatal crashes. He said a preliminary investigation at the scene of the accident had been completed as of Sunday, but no information on what may have caused the accident was available.
He said about 4:30 p.m. Friday afternoon, air traffic controllers heard from the pilot, Luke Sheers, 23, of Ephraim Wis., who had requested clearance to drop in altitude. After that, he said, air traffic controllers lost contact with the plane.
The plane's wreckage caught fire after hitting the ground, Knudson said.
Sheers, Anderson, 27, of Ringwood Okla.; Garrett Coble, 29, of Tulsa, Okla.; and Stephen Luth, 22, of Muscatine, Iowa; died as a result of the crash, officials said.
"The entire Teen Mania family is mourning the loss of four young lives who were full of so much promise and love for God. All were friends of Teen Mania ..." the statement on Teen Mania's website reads. "Please pray that God surrounds the families of Austin, Stephen, Luke and Garrett with His love and peace in this extremely difficult time."
Updated Monday, May 13, 2012 at 12:16 p.m. CDT
Hannah Luce, daughter of Teen Mania Ministries founder Ron Luce, is headed to surgery today after being the sole survivor of a plane crash on Friday afternoon.
Cindy Mallette, communications director at Teen Mania Ministries, confirmed that the other passenger who pulled her to safety, 27-year-old Austin Anderson, was a former Marine who served two tours of duty in Iraq. He had recently graduated from Oral Roberts University and had just been hired by Teen Mania, Ms. Mallette said.
Anderson suffered burns on 90 percent of his body and scorched lungs, Ms. Mallette said. He succumbed to his injuries in the hospital about 12 hours later.
“It was remarkable that he was able to do that (pull her out of the plane),” Ms. Mallette said.
Ms. Luce suffered burns on 30 percent of her body but had no other injuries, Ms. Mallette said.
“That's a miracle and a tribute to Austin's heroism,” Ms. Mallette said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hannah is a friend of my son. A terrible accident, but God has plans for her.
I know Austin Anderson is resting in Heaven, now. A hero to the end. Evidently the PR lady doesn't know that this was a man of the highest caliber. A former United States Marine and serving God.
Rest in Peace, Brother.
An East Texas woman, the sole survivor of a plane crash in Kansas, was listed in serious condition in a Kansas hospital as of Sunday afternoon, according to hospital officials.
Hanna Luce, 22, of Garden Valley, lived through the crash that killed four people Friday afternoon.
Ms. Luce's father, Ron Luce, is one of the founders of Teen Mania Ministries.
The five were flying to Council Bluffs, Iowa when their plane, a twin-engine 401 Cessna, crashed outside Chanute, Kan., which is about 120 miles southwest of Kansas City.
Ms. Luce and another man, Austin Anderson, survived the crash and walked to a nearby road to get help, according to a statement on the Teen Mania Ministries website. Both were severely injured and Anderson died as a result of his injuries Saturday morning, the statement reads.
According to a post on her father's Facebook wall dated Saturday, Ms. Luce was taken off a respirator during the weekend and skin grafts were being discussed. Ms. Luce suffered burns to 28 percent of her body, according to the statement on Teen Mania's website.
Peter Knudson, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, said the investigation into the crash could take up to 12 months, which is typical of fatal crashes. He said a preliminary investigation at the scene of the accident had been completed as of Sunday, but no information on what may have caused the accident was available.
He said about 4:30 p.m. Friday afternoon, air traffic controllers heard from the pilot, Luke Sheers, 23, of Ephraim Wis., who had requested clearance to drop in altitude. After that, he said, air traffic controllers lost contact with the plane.
The plane's wreckage caught fire after hitting the ground, Knudson said.
Sheers, Anderson, 27, of Ringwood Okla.; Garrett Coble, 29, of Tulsa, Okla.; and Stephen Luth, 22, of Muscatine, Iowa; died as a result of the crash, officials said.
"The entire Teen Mania family is mourning the loss of four young lives who were full of so much promise and love for God. All were friends of Teen Mania ..." the statement on Teen Mania's website reads. "Please pray that God surrounds the families of Austin, Stephen, Luke and Garrett with His love and peace in this extremely difficult time."
Updated Monday, May 13, 2012 at 12:16 p.m. CDT
Hannah Luce, daughter of Teen Mania Ministries founder Ron Luce, is headed to surgery today after being the sole survivor of a plane crash on Friday afternoon.
Cindy Mallette, communications director at Teen Mania Ministries, confirmed that the other passenger who pulled her to safety, 27-year-old Austin Anderson, was a former Marine who served two tours of duty in Iraq. He had recently graduated from Oral Roberts University and had just been hired by Teen Mania, Ms. Mallette said.
Anderson suffered burns on 90 percent of his body and scorched lungs, Ms. Mallette said. He succumbed to his injuries in the hospital about 12 hours later.
“It was remarkable that he was able to do that (pull her out of the plane),” Ms. Mallette said.
Ms. Luce suffered burns on 30 percent of her body but had no other injuries, Ms. Mallette said.
“That's a miracle and a tribute to Austin's heroism,” Ms. Mallette said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hannah is a friend of my son. A terrible accident, but God has plans for her.
I know Austin Anderson is resting in Heaven, now. A hero to the end. Evidently the PR lady doesn't know that this was a man of the highest caliber. A former United States Marine and serving God.
Rest in Peace, Brother.