Edmond Campbell, Senior News Coordinator

A survivor in yesterday's plane crash in the hills of Eleven Miles, Bull Bay, St. Thomas, is helped into a Jamaica Defence Force helicopter by members of the Jamaica Fire Brigade and soldiers. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

Four persons aboard a single-engine aircraft, three from the Dominican Republic and an American, miraculously escaped serious injuries after the plane en route from the Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston, to the Dominican Republic, crashed in the hills near Eleven Miles, Bull Bay, after it developed mechanical problems 20 minutes into the flight.

What could have been a disaster, however, was averted when the parachute from the new US$35,000 plane was activated, cushioning the effects of the crash.

Freddy Oscar, 54, pilot; Omar Valdez, 32, co-pilot; Nelson Meyes, 28, all from the Dominican Republic, were taken from the plane unscathed while an American, 79-year-old Ellison Gauding, received minor injuries.

Valdez, however, could not believe his fortune. He looked at himself, breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Am I really alive?"

Crew shocked

He told The Gleaner that the plane took off at 11:00 a.m. and got into difficulty, leaving the crew in a state of shock at little more than 1,000 metres (over 3,280 feet).

"I was co-piloting the plane and I feel like God touched me, that's it. The only reason why I am here is because of God," he said.

Unable to describe how the passengers came out almost unharmed, Mr. Valdez said: "There was a fifth person up there - His name is God."

Up to late yesterday evening, the four men were being questioned by the police. A Gleaner source said a team from the Jamaica Civil Aviation authority which went to the scene of the crash had raised concerns about the location of the flight in relation to its intended destination.

Meanwhile, scores of residents from the area braved the difficult terrain after hearing the explosion and rushed to the assistance of the passengers.

Kevin Eccleston led a team of young men to the crash site. "I must commend the Eleven Miles people for rallying together, doing this tremendous work. It wasn't that difficult; we pull together and get them out safely."

Residents who saw the plane in difficulty called the police and the fire services who were early on the scene.