3-Year-Old Is Lone Survivor Of Russian Plane Crash That Kills 6

A 3-year-old girl was the lone survivor of a Russian plane crash that killed six people Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.

The crash happened in eastern Russia near the town of Nelkan. The airplane belonged to regional carrier Khabarovsk Airlines. The flight was en route from Khabarovsk to an airport in Nelkan and crashed in the woods about a mile away from the airport, according to the Daily Mail.

The girl, Zhasmina Leontyeva, suffered non-life threatening injuries including fractures and a concussion and was scheduled to fly back to Khabarovsk for treatment. The girl’s parents were not on the flight— she was accompanied by a teacher on her way to visit her grandmother.

“I almost turned grey before finding out my daughter is alive,” said the girl’s mother, Marina Leontyeva, to the Siberian Times Wednesday. “I am so sorry for the other passengers. How appalling this is.”

Investigators were looking at bad weather, pilot error or mechanical malfunction as possible causes of the crash.

“'The pilot flew after a delay due to bad weather at the arrival airport,” said Marina Kravchenko, a spokeswoman for the carrier.

The plane was a L-410 twin-engine turboprop, according to the Associated Press. The plane was developed in the 1960’s and is still used by several regional charters in Russia.