Federal and local agencies immediately collaborated to help with the recovery mission and investigation post the tragic American Airlines passenger jet and U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter that killed all 67 people on board on Jan. 29 a short distance from Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport.
The first major U.S. commercial crash in almost 16 years, the NTSB, D.C. Fire Department, Metropolitan Police Department, Coast Guard, FBI, U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving (SUPSALV), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) quickly mobilized to recover passengers, the aircrafts, and large crash debris wreckage from the Potomac River.
As morning dawned the day following the crash, Jan. 30, the frantic search for survivors turned into a somber, dangerous search for passenger remains.
D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly stressed that the search effort to recover the bodies of victims trapped deep within the mangled wreckage was hampered by icy frigid water, near zero visibility, and sharp pieces of metal debris from the two aircraft.
Some bodies needing recovery were trapped deep within the wreckage of the icy Potomac River waters out of the reach of diving teams.
The dangerous risky recovery conditions were emphasized by Edward Kelly, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters.
“They had a lot working against them. They had the current in the river. They had jet fuel all over in the water with them. They had debris. They had ice,” Kelly said. “The swift current was a challenge, searching the fuselage – there’s a lot of sharp objects in the cockpit – so it was a very difficult and dangerous rescue attempt.”
Wreckage Removal and Victim Recovery, A Unified Effort
The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) whose mission in part is to provide and oversee navigation, flood control, environmental protection, and disaster response of our nation’s waterways, served a pivotal role in supporting the effort that successfully recovered all 67 victims.
“We came in very early, the morning after the collision on the 30th,” said Cynthia Mitchell of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District. “It was an extremely cold day with ice covering parts of the water. We are not first responders who assist with the initial first human response or recovery. However, we have debris vessels that clean the Potomac and the Anacostia rivers of large debris that has fallen or been dumped into our waterways. The early arrival of our debris vessels assisted in breaking up and clearing ice which was impeding initial rescue efforts,” Mitchell continued.
Aside from engineering, design, partnering with government agencies, and providing nature restoration, USACE Baltimore also holds federal jurisdictional authority over certain waterways spanning parts of five states and the District of Columbia.
Highly specialized in clearing heavy debris, cleaning, and maintaining waterways, USACE operates specialized equipment crane and debris vessel barges capable of recovering heavy objects from bodies of water.
Due to their expertise, they, along with the U.S. Navy’s Supervisor of Salvage and Diving (SUPSALV) were called upon by the U.S. Coast Guard to assist with The Francis Scott Key Bridge disaster last year.
Once the decision was collectively reached that all recovery to the extent that could be accessed by divers was completed, USACE crews began wreckage removal.
“Removal of wreckage from waterways and salvage efforts go hand in hand in order to recover those who are lost in these tragedies,” Mitchell said.
Wreckage removal was performed in several stages.
Prestaging began on Jan. 31 with the arrival of crane and deck barges. The crane barge penetrates the depths of the water, picks up and removes large wreckage and debris then transfers it to the deck barges which act as storage boats.
The deck barges, once full, returned to land and docked. All contents were transferred to a flatbed truck and transported to a secured hangar at Reagan National Airport. Once transported, all recovered wreckage was turned over to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
The airline jet, recovered in several parts from Feb. 3-6, was the first large wreckage to be removed by USACE crews. With the assistance of the wreckage removal, by Feb. 5, authorities confirmed that all 67 victims had been recovered.
The Black Hawk helicopter wreckage was removed from the Potomac on Feb. 6-7. Other debris was removed on Feb. 8-9 with demobilization of all large barges and vehicles from the Potomac occurring on Feb. 10.
On Feb. 11, USACE in conjunction with the Coast Guard deemed the Potomac River channel clear and open for safe navigation.
‘No Man Left Behind’: A Motto Fulfilled
Collaboration was critical in the successful recovery mission.
“Working together as a Unified Command, everybody has their responsibilities but we work together as a team to ensure that we get the mission accomplished. It’s what we train to do, to make sure we’re ready when something like this happens,” said Captain Patrick Burkett, Commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Maryland National Capital Region.
Due to the heroic response of local and federal agencies, all 67 victims, both aircrafts, and wreckage vital to ensuring safety of future aircraft flights were recovered. There was no further loss of life of the brave diving, recovery, and rescue teams who worked tirelessly around the clock in memoriam to the 67 victims and their grieving families.
USACE Baltimore District Commander Col. Francis Pera expressed gratitude for the diligent work of all rescue personnel.
“Thanks to the exhaustive efforts of Unified Command personnel, we were able to safely remove all major wreckage components of both the jet and helicopter from the Potomac in four days while simultaneously aiding recovery efforts to reunite families who are mourning the tremendous loss of their loved ones,” Pera said.