Teen girl found alive after Washington plane crash 2 others feared dead

(CNN)A teenager whose plane disappeared over the weekend in Washington state was found alive and well on Monday, authorities said.


Autumn Veatch, 16, was flying with her grandparents Saturday in a small, private plane. The aircraft left Montana, but never arrived where it was headed -- Lynden, Washington.

"Autumn did not tell us the condition of her grandparents, but it doesn't sound good. It doesn't sound like they made it," Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers told CNN.

He recounted the teen's story of survival.

"Autumn said they flew out of the clouds, and then flew into the side of a mountain. She was able to get out, and she spent the night by a river before hiking to the highway, where she was rescued," Rogers said.

She was picked up and taken to a local store in Mazama, Washington.

The girl was then taken to a hospital to protect her from the media, and her father was on his way to pick her up, according to the sheriff.

The Bellingham Herald reported that Autumn's father, David Veatch, was headed to Three Rivers Hospital in Brewster.

He said that his daughter tried to help her grandparents -- Leland and Sharon Bowman -- out of the plane, but couldn't. She waited for rescuers near the crash site for about a day, crying, the newspaper reported David Veatch said.

Crews are still looking for the plane and the girl's grandparents. The search is being complicated by the mountainous terrain.

CNN's Tony Marco contributed to this report.