Gwinnett Co. Teachers Survive Colombia Plane Crash

The daughter of a Gwinnett County man who was among four Georgians to survive a plane crash in Colombia is speaking out. Don Henderson's daughter says her father and his wife were traveling with another couple when the plane crashed, and he told her about the terrifying ordeal.

For Don Henderson and his wife, Cathy Schmidt, the trip to Colombia was a retirement celebration. Both are longtime school teachers in Gwinnett County. They had just begun their trip with another couple when tragedy struck.

”His life passed before his eyes, and he was very scared, said Blair Ivey, Henderson’s daughter.

Don Henderson and his wife, Cathy Schmidt, were on board the Boeing 737 that crashed in San Andres, Colombia on Monday.

”He said he looked around and nobody was screaming or crying, Ivey said of her father’s experience. ”He said it was very, very silent.

Ivey says her father told her it was pitch black and pouring down rain, and the only light was coming from a fire in the back of the plane. When he finally made it off the plane, he told her it was chaos.

”He said there were people all over the tarmac, all over the runway, Ivey described. ”People were bleeding. He said it was a horrific sight.

Ivey says her dad injured his shoulder, lost most of his teeth, and has cuts and bruises. His wife has a large gash on her head. On his Facebook page, Henderson posted the following: ‘We are bruised, stitched and missing teeth, but grateful to be alive.’
The two were traveling with friends David and Carolina Bellino. The Bellinos both suffered back injuries. Ivey says her father told her their injuries were minor compared to what could have happened.

”He said, ‘There’s a purpose and a reason for me being here, because that plane, that flight should have killed me. Nobody should have been able to walk away from that.’ Ivey recalled.

Henderson told his daughter that just before takeoff, the flight attendant asked him to move from his eighth row seat to the third row so another family could sit together. The plane broke apart at the eighth row.