‘Saved My Life’: Passengers Recall Narrowly Missing Flight That Crashed in Brazil and Killed 62

Amy Furr

Two travelers who missed boarding the airplane that crashed in Brazil on Friday are sharing their stories after all 61 people aboard died on the flight.

Adriano Assis was hurrying to Cascavel Regional Airport to catch the Voepass Airlines flight that was scheduled to take off at 11:56 a.m. He made it to the airport around 9:40, the Daily Mail reported.

“I waited until it was 10:40 am or so. [Then] the guy said I wouldn’t be boarding anymore because it was an hour before [takeoff],” he explained, adding he begged the agent to let him on the plane to get back to São Paulo.

“At that moment, I argued with him and stuff, and that was it, and he saved my life, man. He did his job because… if he hadn’t done it… maybe I wouldn’t be in this interview today, sorry,” he stated.

Another man said he was among several friends waiting at the wrong gate. When he finally went to the correct gate, he also tried to get permission to board, but an agent told him she could only reschedule his flight instead, which she did.

The plane crashed in Vinhedo. A resident identified as Nathalie Cicari said she was eating lunch when she heard loud noises, the BBC reported Saturday.

When she went outside she saw the plane spinning in the sky, noting the moment it crashed was “terrifying.”

Video footage shows the aircraft eerily spinning in the sky before plunging to the ground. Moments later, black smoke shoots up from the crash site:

The plane was an ATR 72-500 traveling from Cascavel to Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos international airport, according to AFP.

“The mayor of Cascavel, Leonardo Paranhos, confirmed the 62 deaths on social media, calling it a ‘tragedy for us all,’ and said officials were offering services to the loved ones of those on board,” the article said. City Hall of Vinhedo said the plane was carrying 61 people, including the crew.

According to the New York Post, the pilot was 35-year-old Captain Danilo Santos Romano, who had 10 years of experience in the skies:

The Mail reported that a team with the Aeronautical Accident Investigation and Prevention Center will investigate the incident.

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