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See the original image at startribune.com —

Minnesota girl, 13, helps dozens dodge death in Congo crash

startribune.com — Thirteen-year-old April Mosier raced ahead of the flames swelling behind her on the Congolose airliner, a surging thong of human panic close behind. She spotted a crack on the right side of the fuselage, too small even for her to wriggle through with her 4-foot-9, 96-pound frame.

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  • nahsrocketeer75, on 04/17/2008, -4/+24What a great story. But I wish it was made clear why a 14-year-old was leading the effort to pry open this escape route when her parents were apparently close enough nearby to escape themselves. Of course, it could be that they were injured, or unable to reach the spot at which the work was necessary, but the question just cried out for an answer.
    • duk0r, on 04/17/2008, -1/+14I am assuming its because she noticed the crack, then asked some one standing next to her to help pry it open in Swahili.
    • merryworks, on 04/17/2008, -0/+8The news report I saw indicated that the parents were searching for their 3 year old son who was also with them.
  • InRussetShadows, on 04/17/2008, -17/+10C'mon. It's the Red Star Tribune. Asking questions is not something that they're used to doing.
    • novenator, on 04/17/2008, -6/+11go back to Texas if you don't like a news publication unafraid of neocon slander
      • texpundit, on 04/17/2008, -2/+2Get off the Texas thing. The Bushes are from freaking Connecticut. We Texans don't claim them.

        Damned ignorant yankees. *pissed*
        • lnf69, on 04/17/2008, -1/+6I don't think it was the "damned yankees" that elected him to become governor of your wonderful state.
    • bitORlogic, on 04/17/2008, -2/+3Any publication that gives Katherine Kersten a column cannot be sanely considered left-wing.
  • DeskFlyer, on 04/17/2008, -1/+31I was trying to figure out how the DC-9 managed to make its way deep into a neighborhood without ever leaving the ground, then I looked up the airport where it was trying to depart and saw why:

    http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=G ...
    • seibed, on 04/17/2008, -0/+3cool... note the other end of the runway, shortened by a lava flow. (as mentioned in some other articles on the subject)
      • DeskFlyer, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2Holy crap. I didn't bother to zoom out to see the massive volcano to the north:

        http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=G ...
        • norcalscan, on 04/17/2008, -1/+1Yeah - had to check out the lava, then had to follow the lava trails to figure out the source of the lava (hey google earth lets me pretend to be stupid and doesn't laugh at me). Oh look - a volcano. Who put that volcano right there next to the town and airport?
    • idiotkings, on 04/17/2008, -0/+3Believe me or not but I flew out of that airport last month on a similar jet. I can imagine this happening; I don't want to imagine the aftermath. If you were one who survived the crash, you're still badly hurt in one of the worst places on earth: a country destroyed by years of war, disease, starvation, malnutrition and over all of that, corruption. Absolutely frightening and my hopes go out to these people and the survivors.
    • norcalscan, on 04/17/2008, -0/+3You didn't zoom out to see the plane wreck off the runway at the other airport in town?
      http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=G ...
  • JimmySpaza, on 04/17/2008, -28/+5"April, Barry and Marybeth Mosier and 3-year-old Andrew, a Seventh-Day Adventist missionary family from southeastern Minnesota, all survived Tuesday's crash in Congo of the privately operated DC-9. The Mosiers were on their way from neighboring Tanzania to see their oldest son, Keith, a missionary in Congo."

    And there will still be atheists who will deny that God exists.
    • Picaroon, on 04/17/2008, -3/+23Come on Jimmy, that's not a fair argument. What if those same missionaries had been captured and beheaded by some Islamofascist Jihadi? It wouldn't be fair to use that as proof that there is no god.
      • JimmySpaza, on 04/17/2008, -6/+2I'm not using this event as logical proof or even evidence that God exists. Just something to think about. When the coincidences start adding up, logical people should rethink their positions.
        • shakin, on 04/17/2008, -1/+3The word coincidence means that there is no logical connection, but the illusion of a connection exists.

          The coincidences in this case haven't added up to anything. The family was sitting together on a part of the airplane that remained intact, so they all survived. If you can find a seating chart showing the survivors I'll bet many other survivors were seated in the same area and most people who survived were sitting near other survivors.
    • thingnumber2, on 04/17/2008, -1/+18Dozens of people lived in that crash and dozens died, neither is proof or denial of God's existence.
    • enclaved, on 04/17/2008, -4/+15"The casualties included some of the 80 or so on the plane and others on the ground."

      Oh yeah, I'm sure there's a God now, and he's probably pissed he missed the others.
      • g30ph, on 04/17/2008, -2/+10God only cares about Americans dummy.
    • senkmajer, on 04/17/2008, -1/+10As a Theist myself, I agree that the logic is weak.
    • kirralin23, on 04/17/2008, -2/+2Dugg down for being a moron.
  • jedmed, on 04/17/2008, -5/+32If the plane we're traveling on goes down, then you can look for God. I'll be looking for April.
  • DeathfireD, on 04/17/2008, -2/+11"I was just trying to help myself live. ... I didn't know it was going to be one of the main ways for people to get out."
    Makes the quote "god helps those who help themselves" seem so real.
    • VeritasAequitas, on 04/17/2008, -5/+1wait so God wants be to be selfish, and giving? Umm isn't that a contradiction in terms?
      • Avaseal, on 04/17/2008, -3/+0I think he meant to say that god doesn't exist.
        • SpaceMonkeyZero, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2Or that God is a hands-off God
        • aaabatteries, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2or that God is a God who doesn't take care of our issues, but instead gives us the grace and the fortitude to face our difficulties on our own so that we might grow.
        • kirralin23, on 04/17/2008, -1/+2And then gives us a helping hand after we have done all in our power to help ourselves.
  • wassim2k, on 04/17/2008, -1/+17Those surging thongs are scary.
    • Thorpe, on 04/17/2008, -1/+3Am I missing something?
      • ivantalboys, on 04/17/2008, -0/+7It should be a surging throng. I don't imagine that tiny arse parting underwear was trying to escape the aircraft.
        • TheObviousChild, on 04/17/2008, -2/+1Surely someone on board was wearing a thong...weather or not it was surging remains to be proven.
    • YoshinoAiki, on 04/17/2008, -0/+1I like surging thongs!
  • punkcat, on 04/17/2008, -0/+8those 13 year olds are sure making headlines this week. first nasa...
    • wackazz, on 04/17/2008, -1/+0Generation Y have bright futures ahead of them.
  • Steinr, on 04/17/2008, -0/+7it is for bring stories like this to everyones attention that I love digg. Amazing girl! a true hero.
  • amabaie, on 04/17/2008, -0/+7I sure wish I could stay calm and think straight if ever I find myself in such a situation.
  • troon, on 04/17/2008, -1/+4I think you mean "surging *throng*".
  • Vileputrid, on 04/17/2008, -19/+1What a waste, they'll probably starve to death or die of aids in a few months/years anyway.
  • Stormwern, on 04/17/2008, -3/+20Footnote. 1500 civilians die every day in the congo civil war.
  • Sibre, on 04/17/2008, -2/+12Anyone else notice that the article says she's 14, not 13? Pay attention submitter.
    • vick3ii, on 04/17/2008, -2/+3When I submitted the story the headline and the story claimed she was 13...However, sometime yesterday they updated the story and her age...
    • sstidman, on 04/17/2008, -1/+3Any chance it was her birthday recently? Her name is April, after all.
  • northernmunky, on 04/17/2008, -2/+8dugg for the 'surging thong'!
  • senkmajer, on 04/17/2008, -9/+9This is a very dangerous story to have appear on the front page of Digg. Here they go halfway around the world trying to help people in the name of God. Shouldn't they be at home being hypocritical about something? What are they trying to do, make some Theists look like charitable, giving human beings? Shouldn't they be bombing something or hating someone? Stories such as this might end up forcing a few people to pause (if only briefly) in consideration of their bigotry towards Theists.
    • BoneheadFarker, on 04/17/2008, -1/+7Here...I think you dropped this: /sarcasm
    • elegantjihad, on 04/17/2008, -0/+4People are people... some good, some bad. Why would you try to antagonize a religious/non religious flame war with something as rude as your implication? Doesn't sound too charitable or nice to me.
  • theholyraptor, on 04/17/2008, -3/+10FTA: "We tore the crack open with our hands," April said.
    Great now TSA won't let me bring my hands with me on a plane.

    Also, "Nearly 30 minutes after the crash, April and her parents were reunited at the hospital, she having been spirited there by police." Spirited?
    • aaabatteries, on 04/17/2008, -0/+5spir·it·ed, spir·it·ing, spir·its
      1. To carry off mysteriously or secretly:
      • kirralin23, on 04/17/2008, -1/+3So why were the police being so mysterious and secret in bringing her to the hospital?
        • YoshinoAiki, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2In this case I think the word was used to represent the fact it was done without her parents knowing about it or her survival even. To them it was a secret that she not only lived but was taken to the hospital by the police. I think "sprited there by the police" was a good choice of words.
    • SteelChicken, on 04/17/2008, -5/+3pick up a dictionary once in a while, dummy
      • heliox, on 04/17/2008, -1/+5I know what the word mean (and thanks aaa). But I thought it was an odd choice of words too.
        • SpaceMonkeyZero, on 04/17/2008, -0/+5The reporter bought a new thesaurus on his lunch break.
  • namuh, on 04/17/2008, -7/+10Too bad God didn't feel like saving all the other people that died that day.
    • JointVenture, on 04/17/2008, -2/+2They were obviously genetically weak and deserved to die for the betterment of man kinds evolution.
    • YoshinoAiki, on 04/17/2008, -0/+0I'm sure He did feel like saving them all, but if He goes about saving everyone all the time, then that would defeat the purpose for which we are all here.
  • STARTSOMETHING, on 04/17/2008, -6/+4The article says 14, but the headline on digg says 13. I can't take this pressure!
  • gkiltz, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2Often, in these situations, these people don't see themselves as heroes! They are actually just following their base instincts, without even thinking about it, and insist they "just did what any human being would do!"
  • pcronin, on 04/17/2008, -7/+1burried.. she was 14, not 13.
    and the article even used numbers, so submitter had to re-write it wrong.

    fail
    • cdahlkvist, on 04/17/2008, -0/+5Strib changed it after they got more info. When it was submitted the article said 13 not 14.

      You fail.
    • Bersy, on 04/17/2008, -0/+5Yes because that makes the rest of the article completely irrelevant!
  • bikingshaun, on 04/17/2008, -0/+1awesome alliteration in the title
  • SuperVepr308, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2Dugg for the phrase "dodge death"
  • elShaggy, on 04/17/2008, -1/+2There should be an update to the saying "Minnesota nice", to "Minnesota awesome"
  • stoikiometry, on 04/17/2008, -0/+6In response to "she was 14, not 13" comments: Even I didn't think the submitter was this stupid. It seemed odd you would rewrite it with the word 'thirteen' instead of copy-pasting. But I noticed the article says "Last update: April 16, 2008 - 11:47 PM" That's almost 10 hours ago and digg says "Submitted: 21 hr 30 min ago" Use your brains before you condemn someone, morons.
  • ahoymehearties, on 04/17/2008, -6/+0She was doing them no favors, it being the Congo. I think I'd prefer a quick death.
    • YoshinoAiki, on 04/17/2008, -0/+0I'm sure you can find a quick death in Congo as well.
  • warkwark, on 04/17/2008, -7/+0buried as fake

    why would anyone want to fly to africa?
  • busybenj, on 04/17/2008, -2/+2Dugg for "Surging thong of human panic"
    • GrayV, on 04/17/2008, -1/+1Most humans would panic if they saw a surging thong gaining on them. Last thing you need after a plane crash.
  • lnf69, on 04/17/2008, -1/+2After 69 comments, I'm surprised to see very little religious bashing thus far. A strange day for the Antireligionists?
  • Christ0s, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2its good to know that there are good people out there
  • DownkeyKowng, on 04/17/2008, -3/+1But before leaving, Keith said, he knelt under the hot sun and prayed aloud at the edge of an open field next to a parking lot and next to a Piggly Wiggly across the street from a Ole Times Country Buffet.
  • Casty, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2Claire?
  • Gephoria, on 04/17/2008, -1/+1Lots of good things come from minnesota, best state in the country and the only one with enough common sense to elect non-republican/democrat officials
    Vote Ventura for president 08!
  • norcalscan, on 04/17/2008, -0/+2Someone posted a google map image of the airport, one end covered in lava and the other end in people's backyards. Now you can see a second airport in town, with what looks like a plane wreck right off the runway. Nice place to fly into.
    http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=G ...
  • s0nicfreak, on 04/17/2008, -0/+1I like how they pointed out the son was adopted. Wouldn't want people thinking the mom cheated with a black guy...
  •  

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