Kentuckians amazed by miracle plane crash survivor's bravery

When the Piper twin engine plane crashed in the dense Kentucky woods, it was upside down, on fire, and Sailor Gutzler, 7, was the only person aboard still alive. According to investigators, she was sitting in one of the rear seats and climbed out through a 12-inch hole.

Kentucky State Police Lt. Brent White was one of the first at the scene.

"She knew the aircraft was in trouble, she knew her father was having difficulty - from our understanding - with maintaining altitude with the aircraft."

White said after he saw the wreckage, he could not imagine anyone walking away alive.

In near freezing temperatures, she walked three quarters of a mile, wearing shorts, a t-shirt and one sock. She made her way through fallen trees and thorny bushes for 30 minutes -- until she saw a porch light. Larry Wilkins, 71 answered the door.

"I saw a bloody little girl," Wilkins said. "With tears in her eyes, her lips trembling. She told me that her parents were dead. I asked her how she knew that, she said she tried to wake them up and they wouldn't wake up.

"Bravest kid I've ever seen in my life," said Wilkins.

Sailor's father, Marty Gutzler, 48; her mother Kimberly, 46; sister Piper, 9; and cousin Sierra Wilder, 14 all died.

Sailor, who is now with relatives, told police after the crash that she hoped her family was just sleeping.

"You see a lot of things in 20 years of law enforcement," said White. "But I've never seen anything like this. She was the one that gave everybody hope."

Crash investigators say Sailor's account of what happened when could be key in determining the cause of the crash. They plan to talk to her in the coming days. Meanwhile funerals for her family will be held in the Nashville, Ill., area later this week.