Woman who helped plane survivors to safety speaks out

We are learning more about the three people who ran from the flaming wreckage of a plane that crashed on Interstate 75.

We know two of the survivors were passengers, and the other was a flight attendant.

Both pilots died in the crash.

As the plane was trying to land on Interstate 75, it hit at least two cars, one being a crushed white truck and the other a black SUV.

• READ MORE: At least 2 dead after twin-engine plane crashes on I-75 in Collier County

All of it is nothing short of a miracle, though two pilots tragically lost their lives. Neighbors and other pilots, anyone who saw what happened, said they saved countless others.

Not only those on the plane but all the people on a packed I-75 and people in the massive neighborhoods bordering I-75.

With her hand placed protectively on one of their backs, Sheri Rapisarda led the three plane crash survivors to safety.

Rapisarda saw the smoke on her drive to work, started recording, then dropped her phone and ran to help.

“Once I did realize that a plane had crashed, and there were survivors from this plane crash, I knew quickly that I needed to get the survivors away from the plane because the jet fuel was going to explode,” Rapisarda said.

The former paramedic doesn’t want to be called a hero, but we know the explosion happened just seconds after she ushered them away.

Rapisarda’s phone, still rolling, caught the two surviving passengers and flight attendant’s conversation once safely in the car.

The two pilots lost their lives but saved countless others. Both engines went out, and they landed with no bystander lives lost.

Fellow pilots, neighbors, and aviation experts call them heroes.

“Very fortunate, especially for that pilot who really did everything he could to save lives on the ground,” said Javed Kapadia, a homeowner closest to the crash.

The plane hit two cars on the interstate. The impact smashed in the back of a white pickup truck. That man’s company said in a statement he walked away with minor injuries and is recovering with his family.

The other driver was in the car with her daughter and sister. The wing hit the car.

WINK spoke to that driver on the phone Monday morning. She was sore the day after the crash but said she feels better today.