GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — An 11-year-old girl who survived a Michigan plane crash that killed her father and three other people has been released from a rehabilitation hospital.
Laney Perdue of Gaylord was one of five people in a plane that crashed on Beaver Island off Michigan’s northern Lower Peninsula on Nov. 13. Federal safety officials said the plane was one used to ferry people between the island and Charlevoix in the northern Lower Peninsula.
The family believes Laney survived because her father, Mike, shielded her during the crash.
Laney's mother, Christie Perdue, released the following statement after the incident: "We are heartbroken with the loss of my husband... He gave the best bear hugs, and I believe he grabbed our daughter and protected her. It's her last memory before the crash.
Laney was released Wednesday, about three weeks after the crash, from Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital in Grand Rapids. Perdue said her daughter is “our miracle.”
Mike Perdue died, along with the pilot and a couple. The crash is being investigated by a federal transportation agency.
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