moose135
2010-01-25, 08:09 PM
Monday 1/25/10 marks the 20th anniversary of the crash of Avianca Flight 52 in Cove Neck, on the north shore of Long Island. The flight was a Boeing 707, from Bogota and Medellin, Colombia, to JFK. After several enroute weather holds, and low on fuel, they attempted an approach to Rwy 22L. They were forced to go missed approach due to low level wind shear, and rather than declare an emergency, simply told controllers that they were low on fuel (perhaps due to language difficulties). As they were being vectored for another approach, the engines flamed out, and the aircraft crashed in a wooded area in Cove Neck. 73 passengers and crew were killed, with 85 surviving.
This happened less than 5 miles from my house - I heard sirens going up the road (I live on the main access road running up to the Cove Neck area) and switched over to News 12 to see what was going on. During the night, there was a massive rescue operation, with dozens (hundreds?) of police, fire, rescue, ambulances, you name it, heading up to the crash site. Since there was only one two-lane road in the area, it soon became choked with emergency responders. Several times, watching the news coverage, I would see an ambulance pass behind the reporter, only to watch it pass the house minutes later.
This happened less than 5 miles from my house - I heard sirens going up the road (I live on the main access road running up to the Cove Neck area) and switched over to News 12 to see what was going on. During the night, there was a massive rescue operation, with dozens (hundreds?) of police, fire, rescue, ambulances, you name it, heading up to the crash site. Since there was only one two-lane road in the area, it soon became choked with emergency responders. Several times, watching the news coverage, I would see an ambulance pass behind the reporter, only to watch it pass the house minutes later.