I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but: Passenger Jet Crashes in Queens, NY

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Passenger Jet Crashes in Queens, NY

NEW YORK (AP) - An American Airlines flight that had just taken off for the Dominican Republic crashed Monday, and buildings reportedly were on fire in the Queens section of New York City.

Flight 587, an Airbus A300 that can hold 275 passengers, crashed shortly after 9 a.m. and thick, black smoke could be seen miles away. There was no report of the number of casualties, either on the plane or on the ground.

Thick, black smoke could be seen miles away from the crash in the Rockaways section of Queens.

The crash came two months after the attack on the World Trade Center, which was destroyed by two Boeing 767s hijacked out of Boston's Logan Airport. One of the planes was operated by American, the other by United.

Bill Schumann of the Federal Aviation Administration (news - web sites) said there was no immediate indication of what caused the crash. He said the plane crashed about five miles from Kennedy Airport.

All metro area airports - Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark - were closed following the crash, in Rockaway, Queens. The Office of Emergency Management said all bridges and tunnels in the city were closed except to emergency vehicles.

Planes were being diverted, and Delta Air Lines spokeswoman Peggy Estes said the airline was working to account for all its planes.

The mayor canceled his morning events and headed to the scene.

One eyewitness reported debris falling from sky, and told the Fox News Channel four homes were on fire.

Another told CNN he was 40 blocks away and saw "just a lot of smoke. Tons and tons of smoke. You can see emergency vehicles heading to the area. Lots of people are standing in the streets. It's very tense."



-- Rich (living_in_interesting_times@hotmail.com), November 12, 2001

Answers

I've had the reports of this in the background for several hours now, Rich. Right now, I consider it a simple failure [as though failures are EVER simple.] The end-result, however, will be that my second daughter will NOT want to fly home for Christmas. She watched that movie where the young man didn't fly and moved on to suggest that he SHOULD have been dead, as the plane had crashed. Anyway, it's, perhaps, more disturbing in these times than previously, but I STILL don't think that folks should sit in a bunker. Life is for the living, and a part of that life is flying.

-- Anita (Anita_S3@hotmail.com), November 12, 2001.

Did any of you watch the telethon set up by Paul McCartney for the FDNY and NYPD?

A firefighter by the name of Mike Moran was up on stage eulogizing his fallen brothers, he was extremely emotional because his neighborhood was hit very hard by casualties.

He said something like (actually he was yelling)...if Osamma bin Laden is watching this right now that he could kiss his Royal Irish Ass and to come and get him...he stated he lived in "Rockaway- Queens". Then he said it again, "Rockaway-Queens..you BITCH"!

Just seems like an awful coincidence that this happened today...and can you imagine what that firefighter might be thinking right now :(

-- Peg (pegmc@mediaone.net), November 12, 2001.


We have only just begun. You have been invading and polluting our airspace for decades. We declare Jihad.

-- (The Islamic Extremist @ Suicidal Seagull. Network), November 12, 2001.

Seagull want a cracker? ;)

Regardless of whether it was an accident or terrorism, what do you think this will do to American Airlines in the future?

-- Pammy (pamela_sue57@hotmail.com), November 12, 2001.


I had the unhappy honor of being the first person at my job to get a hysterical phone call from the scene. When I tried to get information for the guy on the line, the people in charge of getting accurate information pooh-poohed it as the ravings of a drunk. I had to ask three times for it to be checked out before they looked on the internet and said "oops!"

Voices again. This time most of them were just terribly uptight, other than the first guy there were no eye witnesses on my lines. Several people mentioned they would NEVER fly again.

The office warned us not to believe any theory we might hear over the phone and the official word was that it was an accident. I wish the plane hadn't broken up before hitting the ground...but I'd rather believe in a stupid accident.

I have to apologize to any TB'er who may have been offended by my teasing over the "dreams" and "visions"...about three nights ago I had the first dream that I could remember in a very long time. The dream was driving down the road and seeing a plane coming down in pieces from a clear sky on a bright day. There was one large piece that exploded on impact to my north (dream-north). I think the dream was from being on the internet and reading too much of this stuff. There's no way my dream could have been prophetic...because it just wasn't. It couldn't have been. But if I were inclined to believe in such things, I would think I'd had precognition. Except I know I didn't.

The cure for bad dreams is a strong antihistamine before bedtime.

-- helen (headache@twelve.o.clock.high), November 12, 2001.



I wish the plane hadn't broken up before hitting the ground...

Me too, helen, me too!

-- Peg (empathy@bound.s), November 12, 2001.


This is the vertical upright from the tail section of flight 587 recovered by the Coast Guard a couple of hours ago from Jamaica Bay.

The piece is virtually unscathed...lending to a theroy that it became disconnected in the air and not on impact.

-- Peg (just @ more. info), November 12, 2001.


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