NORTH ANDOVER, MASS. (WHDH) - A father and daughter who survived a plane crash in Stow earlier this month are now back home, continuing their recoveries just over a week after the crash that sent the two of them and a family member to the hospital.
The crash happened on Sunday, July 23. On Monday, Rob Bauer and his daughter, Daniela Bauer, spoke to 7NEWS, remembering the terrifying moment their pilot told them their plan was going down.
“We were getting pretty close to the trees,” Daniela said. “He was funny, he said ‘I can’t go back up. We’re just going to have to have a crash landing.’”
Daniela continued, saying the last thing she remembers from the crash was the front of the plane hitting the trees.
“I don’t know if I had more than a couple of seconds to get ready,” Rob said. “That’s when panic set in. I saw lots of green and impact and then I blacked out.”
Stow emergency officials in a statement said they responded to the area of Taylor Road near Minute Man Air Field around 1 p.m. on July 23 after multiple 911 callers reported a plane crash. On scene, authorities said emergency crews found a Cessna plane crashed in a wooded area near a home.
Rob and Daniela were rushed to the hospital along with the pilot, James Bauer — Rob’s brother.
Rob suffered a broken neck and had to get staples in his head. Daniela has a broken wrist and jaw, which had to be wired shut. James, the pilot, was awaiting another surgery on Monday and has broken ribs as well as cuts to his face.
“The last thing I remember is hitting some green and then waking up in a hospital bed getting stitches in my face,” Daniela said.
The family was on their way back from a trip to pick Daniela up at a sports camp in Lake Placid. After an initial failed landing at Minute Man Air Field, they said, they were trying to land again when something went wrong.
“He avoided houses,” Rob said of his brother. “The way he put the plane down onto the tree canopy, it literally saved us.”
“If he had gone right in, the engine would have been on top of us,” he said.
As Rob, Daniela and James all start their long road to recovery, they wanted to share their gratitude for their family, friends and their medical staff.
“I have nothing but admiration for what they’ve done — the doctors for putting me back together and the nurses and assistants for taking care of me,” Rob said. “I owe them so much.”
“There’s some scary parts,” Daniela said. “But overall, I feel great. I feel like after everything, just being a week after the incident, I feel like we’re in a pretty good spot.”
The cause of the crash remained under investigation as of Monday night.
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