QCOSTARICA — Paola Amador, the only survivor of the crash of a small plane in Pico Blanco, on November 25, gave her first public statements on Thursday.
This was during a surprise visit by President Rodrigo Chaves, who showed up at the INS Trauma Hospital, where Amador is recovering.
“I am very pleased to meet the president and it was a great pleasure for me that he was able to come here to greet me and find out about my situation,” Amador said in response to Chaves’ visit.
“I really appreciate all the people who have been concerned about me and I really wish them all the blessings, because up to now I have been fine,” she added.
“For God, nothing is impossible,” she stressed.
Plane accident
The incident took place on Monday, November 25, shortly afternoon, when a small plane carrying six people (the pilot, copilot, and four passengers) had to be redirected to the San José airport instead of landing at the Pavas airport due to unfavorable weather conditions.
Read more: Plane crash in Escazú mountain leaves five people dead and one survivor
The last conversation between the control tower and the pilot indicated that all was normal. Moments later the plane disappeared from radar and all communications lost.
Amador, 31, was the only survivor.
The crashed Cesna 206, with tail number TI-GER, was spotted some two hours later. However, it took hours before anyone could reach the crash site due to the terrain. Around 9 pm, after an exhaustive search and rescue, first responders were able to provide Amador first aid.
Read more: Plane crashes in Costa Rica have claimed 45 lives since 2000
Following an arduous task, it was at the break of daylight to transfer Amador to the San Juan de Dios Hospital in downtown San José.
Read more: Father of pilot killed in Monday’s plane crash died in a similar accident
The victims were Mario Miranda (pilot), Ruth Mora (copilot), Jean Franco Segura, Gabriela Calleja, and Enrique Castillo.