WEST JORDAN, Utah -- The woman who lived in West Jordan when a plane came crashing down into her home on Saturday has died from her injuries.
Family members describe Mary Quintana, 72, as a loving, kind and charismatic woman who went quickly from sitting on her porch to fighting for her life.
Autumn Allen, a neighbor who is studying to become an EMT, described feeling “inspired” by Quintana’s strength as she pulled the victim away from the burning home.
“When I picked her up under her shoulder, I said, ‘Mary, baby you gotta help me,’” Allen described. “She was talking. She just kept saying, ‘Don’t tell my family over the phone,’ and she was very strong-willed at that point. She was very sweet. She just — she was more worried about people around her than herself… If I was burned as bad as her, I don’t think I’d move.”
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Allen and her mother are supposed to be used to hearing planes take off and fly above their home in West Jordan.
“I think it’s going to be hard for the flashbacks to stop for people around here,” Allen said. “I’m at peace because I know that she’s not in pain.”
Quintana’s brother, Joe Murillo Jr., visited the home on the day of the crash.
“I lost my mom and dad, and that’s the only sister I’ve got, and I hope I don’t lose her,” Murillo told FOX 13.
Neighbors created a GoFundMe page for the family even before learning of Quintana’s death.
“We definitely want to make sure the family gets this money, but we are going to do what the family wants us to do,” said neighbor Gayle Hughes.
It’s unclear whether the family will accept the GoFundMe donations. Donors said they hope, at the very least, the money goes toward a cause that Quintana was passionate about.
The family has asked for privacy during this very difficult time. So many people have come out to see the crash site, neighbors had to post signs at various entrances of the neighborhood, urging people to be respectful.
“People should just understand that there’s a boundary,” Allen said. “People didn’t want to go see 9/11. They were running from it. They didn’t want to see it. Why would you want to see this?”
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