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CNN Sunday Morning
Bahamas Crash
Aired July 20, 2003 - 07:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Last week a small plane tumbled into the ocean leaving survivors clinging to hope and each other. Two children were left to fend for themselves after losing their mother and a cousin.
The two were kept afloat with the help of two other survivors who recounted their harrowing tale. Nigel Robertson, of CNN affiliate WYFF, reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIGEL ROBERTSON, WYFF CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It all started so perfectly.
WALT WILKINS, CRASH SURVIVOR: Danielle and I were married in Charleston, Saturday night, a mall friends and family wedding
ROBERTSON: After a flight to Ft. Lauderdale, the plan was to fly to Treasure Cay, in the Bahamas, for the honeymoon.
WALT WILKINS: We took off and had a very nice takeoff, no problems.
ROBERTSON: The plane was a Cessna 402, 10 people were on board.
WALT WILKINS: And about 50 minutes into the flight, I noticed some smoke coming out of the right engine.
ROBERTSON: Walt says he new something was wrong.
WALT WILKINS: About 55 minutes into the flight, the engine blew.
ROBERTSON: The plane was going down quickly.
DONYELLE WILKINS, CRASH SURVIVOR: Walt was leaning into my seat, holding my hand. And we both told each other we loved each other.
And we really just didn't know what was going on. We thought we weren't going to make, we really did.
WALT WILKINS: All of a sudden there was an enormous crash and enormous sound.
ROBERTSON: People began jumping into the rough open ocean.
WALT WILKINS: And we were all trying to grab life jackets as fast as we could, get them inflated, people were having difficulty inflating the life jackets and so we're trying to swim down and pull the cord and --
ROBERTSON: The large ocean waves were not kind to them.
WALT WILKINS: And it is extremely difficult situation, coupled with the stress and the emotion.
ROBERTSON: Everyone began to try to swim to shore and that's when Walt and Donyelle noticed something in the water.
DONYELLE WILKINS: We came upon these two children. And we screamed up ahead that we were staying put because they couldn't obviously swim along. They were just in their life jackets, in the water.
ROBERTSON: Donyelle says that when everything changed.
DONYELLE WILKINS: I wouldn't want to be here right now, if I couldn't say they were here.
WALT WILKINS: They're very strong children. They really are.
ROBERTSON: The newlyweds stayed right by the children's side, singing.
DONYELLE WILKINS: We sang "Amazing Grace" and "Jesus Loves Me". The two songs they chose for us to sing.
ROBERTSON: Walt and Donyelle say they knew God was watching over them. In fact, their wedding song was "The Prayer".
DONYELLE WILKINS: It is really the song, if you have ever heard the words, truly, even more meaningful now that we're home safely.
ROBERTSON: It took treading the rough ocean water for almost two hours, holding on to two kids, and they say another miracle from above -- a plane, passing by, dropped a life boat.
WALT WILKINS: About two minutes, by the time we arrived to the life boat, we saw the choppers and they were coming.
ROBERTSON: The couple was saved. They lost everything they had with them.
WALT WILKINS: About the most important thing that I lost was my wedding band. I think it came off, right on impact, I believe.
ROBERTSON: Yet, still, they have each other.
WALT WILKINS: I just know that I love my wife more than anything in the world and I'd do anything in the world for her.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: That report came to us, once again, from Nigel Robertson, CNN affiliate WYFF.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired July 20, 2003 - 07:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Last week a small plane tumbled into the ocean leaving survivors clinging to hope and each other. Two children were left to fend for themselves after losing their mother and a cousin.
The two were kept afloat with the help of two other survivors who recounted their harrowing tale. Nigel Robertson, of CNN affiliate WYFF, reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIGEL ROBERTSON, WYFF CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It all started so perfectly.
WALT WILKINS, CRASH SURVIVOR: Danielle and I were married in Charleston, Saturday night, a mall friends and family wedding
ROBERTSON: After a flight to Ft. Lauderdale, the plan was to fly to Treasure Cay, in the Bahamas, for the honeymoon.
WALT WILKINS: We took off and had a very nice takeoff, no problems.
ROBERTSON: The plane was a Cessna 402, 10 people were on board.
WALT WILKINS: And about 50 minutes into the flight, I noticed some smoke coming out of the right engine.
ROBERTSON: Walt says he new something was wrong.
WALT WILKINS: About 55 minutes into the flight, the engine blew.
ROBERTSON: The plane was going down quickly.
DONYELLE WILKINS, CRASH SURVIVOR: Walt was leaning into my seat, holding my hand. And we both told each other we loved each other.
And we really just didn't know what was going on. We thought we weren't going to make, we really did.
WALT WILKINS: All of a sudden there was an enormous crash and enormous sound.
ROBERTSON: People began jumping into the rough open ocean.
WALT WILKINS: And we were all trying to grab life jackets as fast as we could, get them inflated, people were having difficulty inflating the life jackets and so we're trying to swim down and pull the cord and --
ROBERTSON: The large ocean waves were not kind to them.
WALT WILKINS: And it is extremely difficult situation, coupled with the stress and the emotion.
ROBERTSON: Everyone began to try to swim to shore and that's when Walt and Donyelle noticed something in the water.
DONYELLE WILKINS: We came upon these two children. And we screamed up ahead that we were staying put because they couldn't obviously swim along. They were just in their life jackets, in the water.
ROBERTSON: Donyelle says that when everything changed.
DONYELLE WILKINS: I wouldn't want to be here right now, if I couldn't say they were here.
WALT WILKINS: They're very strong children. They really are.
ROBERTSON: The newlyweds stayed right by the children's side, singing.
DONYELLE WILKINS: We sang "Amazing Grace" and "Jesus Loves Me". The two songs they chose for us to sing.
ROBERTSON: Walt and Donyelle say they knew God was watching over them. In fact, their wedding song was "The Prayer".
DONYELLE WILKINS: It is really the song, if you have ever heard the words, truly, even more meaningful now that we're home safely.
ROBERTSON: It took treading the rough ocean water for almost two hours, holding on to two kids, and they say another miracle from above -- a plane, passing by, dropped a life boat.
WALT WILKINS: About two minutes, by the time we arrived to the life boat, we saw the choppers and they were coming.
ROBERTSON: The couple was saved. They lost everything they had with them.
WALT WILKINS: About the most important thing that I lost was my wedding band. I think it came off, right on impact, I believe.
ROBERTSON: Yet, still, they have each other.
WALT WILKINS: I just know that I love my wife more than anything in the world and I'd do anything in the world for her.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: That report came to us, once again, from Nigel Robertson, CNN affiliate WYFF.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
