Taiwan Plane Crash: TransAsia Tragedy Survivor Describes Final Moments
The 72-year-old's quick reaction helped him save other drowning passengers.
— -- A 72-year-old survivor from the TransAsia plane crash in Taiwan described the final moments before the plane plummeted into the Taipei River and said he helped save some drowning passengers.
Huang Jin-Sun recalled the harrowing details while in a hospital bed at Tri Service General Hospital in Taipei.
"I felt something was not right after the plane took off," Jin-Sun told Eastern Television, a Taiwanese cable broadcast station. "The flight was not full."
"I told the woman next to me we should buckle our seat belts, hold onto the seat and cover our head," Jin-Sun added.
Just as he finished saying that, the plane went down, Jin-Sun said.
"I saw others were drowning," he said. "If I did not move quick enough to help them, soon, they would have been dead."
The plane's plunge was captured on dashcam video from Taiwan’s National Freeway No. 1. The plane could be seen veering sharply, with the wing striking a vehicle and barrier before careening into the river.
The pilot of the ill-fated TransAsia Flight 235 can be heard saying, "Mayday, mayday, engine flameout," to the control tower in an audio clip that was confirmed by Taiwan's Civil Aeronautical Administration as authentic.
"Engine flameout" refers to flames being extinguished in the combustion chamber of the engine, so that it shuts down and no longer drives the propeller. Causes could include a lack of fuel or being struck by volcanic ash, a bird or some other object.
At least 32 people on board the ATR 72 were killed and 15 survivors were injured in the crash in Taiwan's capital.
Divers were searching in the river for the remaining 11 people on board, including the two pilots. The plane's black boxes were found overnight.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
