Witnesses to a June 9 plane crash in 100 Mile House are saying a series of fortunate events kept things from turning tragic.
The three occupants of the Cessna 172 are lucky to be alive thanks to power lines and a sign that allowed the plane to crash with less force than it otherwise might have.
Several people on the ground nearby were missed and the few cars in the vicinity were positioned so the aircraft had an empty space to skid through.
Some witnesses say they watched as the Cessna 172 clipped secondary power lines after takeoff around 3:45 p.m., then smash through the Blue Sky Restaurant sign before crash landing in the back lane.
Employee Jackie McDonald says she had just walked out the front door of the restaurant when she saw the plane hit the wires, knocking the plane's wing off.
"When it hit the sign it was so loud ... louder even than when it hit that back wall."
She ran inside to call 9-1-1 and then raced over to the plane where a crowd of about 20 people was already trying to help, McDonald explains.
The pilot climbed out of the cockpit on his own, with his face bleeding but still talking, she says, adding her employer fetched a chair so the injured man could sit down.
Then police, fire department and ambulance personnel all arrived within minutes, she adds.
Noting the whole event was pretty scary, McDonald says she could almost not believe what she was seeing.
"The way everything happened it's so lucky that nobody was hurt."
A small truck that was damaged when the plane came to a stop on the rear wall of TW Tanning belongs to an employee, she adds.
"She's so lucky because she told me she was going to leave two minutes before that happened."
While standing just a few metres away, McDonald explains she was feeling too shocked during those few moments to fear for her own safety.
It was also fortunate the power lines didn't land in the path of traffic, she says, adding BC Hydro was on scene "really quick" to fix the downed wires.
Jay Matlock was working inside the South Cariboo Visitor Centre when the crash occurred, and also saw it happen.
"I could see it out the front window as it flew through the top of the trees on the [marsh] path there, and then it hit the lower set of power lines."
The whole incident happened in mere seconds, Matlock says, and then he rushed across to see if he could help.
Matlock adds he spoke with several people who were standing near the crash, including one man who is also fortunate to be alive.
"He said he was very close to the sign and he watched the whole thing when it happened. He was right there."
The plane flipped over and hit the wall tail-first, which Matlock notes likely also helped the occupants to escape with their lives.
"The way [the pilot] crashed into everything slowed him down enough to land safely. It was a very miraculous set of events."
Several cars "came screeching to a stop" on the highway, he says, when the drivers saw the plane nearly missing traffic.
He adds the results would have been much worse if the plane was a couple of feet lower and there was a camper or a semi-trailer passing right then, or if someone was in the parking lot.
"The Blue Sky parking lot is very busy more often than not, and this time there was only about two cars in it."
If the path of the plane was 15 feet further south, Matlock says it could have gone right into the restaurant where McDonald was standing.