Looking at her mangled gazebo, Altagracia Echavarria can't believe what happened in her backyard a day ago.
Echavarria got out of the spa in the backyard of her St. Hubert home only 25 minutes before a plane crashed into it Saturday.
“I’m still in shock. I didn’t sleep at all last night,” she said.
The covered hot tub is ruined but she knows the outcome could have been worse.
Witnesses say the Cessna took off made a u-turn and took a dive into the yard, somehow avoiding houses and power lines.
“It's surprising how it happened because you know (the house is) surrounded by electric poles and everything it only crashed like (in) one spot,” said Jean-Guy Ranger of the Longueuil fire department.
The fire department believes the gazebo may have broken the plane's fall, possibly saving the 17-year-old pilot's life.
She sustained minor injuries in the crash and was released from hospital Sunday with a cut across her forehead.
Ranger says the fire department had to act quickly to contain the damage, using foam to absorb any leaking fuel that could have caught fire.
A spokesperson for Air Richelieu flight school, to which the plane is registered, told CTV News the pilot had 12 hours of training and it was her third solo flight.
Those living near the St. Hubert airport say they've expressed concerns about flight paths before.
“I think the planes take off too close. This is a residential area,” Echavarria said.
The plane wreckage is being stored in an airport hangar. The Transportation Safety Board says it will evaluate it next week and try and determine how the accident happened.
