Woman explains how she was sole survivor of plane crash that killed 152 people
Topics: News, World News, Travel
Callum Jones
Featured Image Credit: THOMAS SAMSON/AFP via Getty Images/Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Topics: News, World News, Travel
A woman has explained how she was the sole survivor of a plane crash that resulted in 152 people tragically losing their lives.
Bahia Bakari was just 12 years old when she boarded a Yemen Airways flight with her mother from Paris to Comoros.
But on June 30, 2009, the Airbus A310 crashed into the sea upon descending.
This left 141 passengers and 11 crew members dead, with Bakari the only survivor.
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In 2022, Bakar provided a testimony reflecting on what happened that day as Yemen's national air carrier - now known as Yemenia - faced charges of manslaughter and unintentional injuries as a result of the crash.
Speaking in the Paris court, a then 25-year-old Bakari explained how passengers were 'exhausted' on the night flight.
"We were landing, I started to feel some turbulence, but people didn’t seem worried about it. Then I felt an electrical shock and I woke up in the water," she said.
"I don’t remember what happened between sitting in the plane and being in the water. I have a black hole."
ABC reported at the time that Bakari grabbed a piece of debris and used it to keep afloat after the plane plummeted into the sea.
She was in the water for 11 hours before she was rescued by fishermen.
Bakari said that she remembers hearing 'female voices which screamed for help in Comorian' but that she fell asleep and woke up alone.
Recalling the time she waited in the water for help, Bakari said: "It was so long. I almost gave up. I almost lost hope. Thinking about my mom helped me to hold up. I convinced myself that everyone except me made it home safe."
Thankfully, the young girl was rescued from the water and taken to Moroni hospital.
She had sustained a broken collarbone, hip, and other injuries during the crash.
"I don’t suffer any physical effects, but my mother is gone. I was very close to her," Bakari added.
In September 2022, the court ruled Yemenia was guilty of involuntary homicide for the crash and it was ordered to pay a $224,500 fine.
The airline was also ordered to pay $998,000 in damages and legal costs to the lone survivor, Bakari, and the families of 65 French citizens who were killed.
Said Assoumani, the head of a victims’ families association, said: "French justice has acknowledged that Yemenia committed serious mistakes.
"The ruling is excellent and consistent with our expectations."