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Friday, February 13, 2009

A Continental Connection flight from Newark to Buffalo crashed into a house about four to six miles from Buffalo Niagara International Airport on Thursday night, killing 50 people, officials said.

Continental Airlines Flight 3407 is a daily commuter flight from Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey to Buffalo, New York, operated under the Continental Connection brand by Virginia-based regional airline Colgan Air.

The Buffalo News has reported that the plane, a Bombardier Dash 8 turboprop with tail number N200WQ has crashed into a home located at 6038 Long Street, not far from the Clarence Center Fire Hall in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center approximately 10:17 p.m. EST (03:20 UTC), Thursday, February 12, 2009. Three people were inside the house.

According to Becky Gibbons of New York State Police and Chris Collins County Executive in Erie County, New York, the total number of fatalities is 50, including 45 passengers, four crew members and a person on the ground, while a woman and daughter on the ground were injured, near the edge of farmland, about seven miles from Buffalo Niagara International Airport.

Karen Wielinski, age 57, and her daughter, Jill, age 22 were brought to Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital in Williamsville where they are in stable condition in the emergency room. The father, Douglas C. Wielinski, 61 died from his injuries. Two volunteer firefighters are also being treated for smoke inhalation and minor injuries. They are expected to be released later Friday morning.

The crew member names have been released as of 8:20 AM EST, and are listed as: Captain Marvin Renslow, First Officer Rebecca Shaw, Flight Attendant Matilda Quintero, Flight Attendant Donna Prisco, and Captain Joseph Zuffoletto who was an off-duty crew member.

One of the crash victims, Beverly Eckert, of Stamford, Connecticut and widow of 9/11 terror attack victim, Buffalo native, Sean Rooney, was coming home for her husband’s 58th birthday celebration. Her sister, Sue Bourque noted to The Buffalo News, “We know she was on that plane and now she’s with him.” Chris Kausner has said his sister Elise, age 24, a law student, was on board the plane. “I’m thinking about the fact that my mother has to fly home from Florida and what I’m going to tell my two sons,” he said.

The plane, which was carrying over 2.5 tonnes (5,000 pounds) of fuel, impacted a residence that was completely destroyed. Amid rain and sleet, the ill-fated plane exploded into a huge orange fireball, sparking a large fire which emergency crews had to contain. Twelve houses near the crash site were evacuated.

The aircraft in question was on approach to land at the nearby Buffalo Niagara International Airport when it disappeared from radar.

According to recordings from air traffic control, the pilot did not report any problem to approach control, and could not be contacted by the Buffalo tower after handoff. “Can other planes see anything?” asked the traffic controller, but no one has responded. The pilot’s last comment was “Colgan Flight 3407,” but there were no sounds of distress.

The Buffalo News has reported that crew members aboard the flight from Newark Airport reported mechanical problems as they approached Buffalo. Weather conditions were reported to be a wintry mix in the area, with light snow, fog, and 17 mile per hour winds.

In the 31-minute audio-recording there are conversations between the cockpit, air traffic control and other aircraft in the vicinity. Following take-off from Newark Airport, a female voice (pilot) in the 3407 plane’s cockpit is heard informing air authorities that her aircraft was turning on approach to landing. The pilot stopped communicating at 2,300ft.

“This aircraft was 5 miles out, all of a sudden we have no response from that aircraft,” the controller declares. 21 minutes and 45 seconds into the recording, the control tower informs a JetBlue Airlines: “…apparently we have an emergency, I’ll have to get back to you,” reported The Daily Telegraph.

“It was cold, snowing and dark but these planes are designed to fly in icy conditions. However, those conditions can be very fickle and if ice builds up on a plane it can be very difficult. At this time of year, when a pilot crashes approaching an airport that they will know well, the first thing you look at is the weather,” said David Learmount, of Flight International.

Continental Airlines Inc. said Colgan Air was in the process of collecting information. “Continental extends its deepest sympathy to the family members and loved ones of those involved in this accident. We are providing our full assistance to Colgan Air so that together we can provide as much support as possible for all concerned,” said Larry Kellner, CEO of Continental Airlines since December 2004.

The Bombardier Dash 8 a 74-seat is a twin-engined, medium range, turboprop airliner.

According to the Ascend Online Fleets database, Colgan, a company of about 1,100 employees has a fleet of 15 Bombardier Dash 8’s, along with 3 Hawker Beechcraft 1900D and 38 Saab 340B turboprops. Flight 3407’s airplane was less than one year old and had flown for only about 1,500 hours, said Kieran Daly, of the online aviation news service Air Transport Intelligence, saying that the doomed turboprop plane is one of the safest of its type.

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) has permanently grounded its Dash 8s fleet after three crash landings during a two-month period in 2007 caused by faulty landing gear. “Confidence in the Q400 has diminished considerably and our customers are becoming increasingly doubtful about flying in this type of aircraft,” said Mats Jansson, SAS president and CEO. “I have decided to immediately remove Dash 8 Q400 aircraft from service,” he added.

“There is ‘no indication of any security related event’ that brought the plane down,” said FBI spokesman Richard Kolko. Conditions of freezing drizzle, known as hard rime, were the most likely cause of the tragedy.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has announced that they would send a team to the crash site on Friday to begin the investigation. Lorenda Ward will serve as chief investigator with the assistance of NTSB Commissioner Steven Chealander and public affairs officer Keith Holloway. Ward has investigated several other plane crashes — including the 2006 New York City plane crash that claimed the life of New York Yankees pitcher Corey Lidle.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic accident that occurred tonight in Clarence. Our focus right now is on supporting the first responders on the ground and their efforts to ensure the health and safety of people in the area,” said Chris Lee, an Republican politician from Corning, New York, representing the 26th Congressional District of New York.

The tragedy is the nation’s deadliest disaster since the Comair Flight 191 crashed in Lexington, Kentucky in August 2006. Delta Air Lines Flight 5191 was a scheduled U.S. domestic passenger flight from Lexington, Kentucky, to Atlanta, Georgia. On the morning of August 27, 2006, the Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet 100ER that was being used for the flight crashed while attempting to take off from Blue Grass Airport in Fayette County, Kentucky, four miles (6 kilometers) west of the central business district of the City of Lexington.

Financially, Continental is faced with volatile fuel prices amid a slowdown from the weak economy. It has posted losses of $585 million for 2008.

Monday, February 1, 2010

A decades-old building collapsed along Ma Tau Wai Road in Hong Kong at about 1:30pm on Friday, local time. That building was located at 45J, Ma Tau Wai Road in Hung Hom. A shop on its ground floor was undergoing renovations when the building collapsed. The street was full of dust afterwards. Firefighters arrived at the scene to search survivors and they asked residents in the buildings nearby to evacuate the area. Those buildings included 45G and 45H.

Chief Executive Donald Tsang called for an investigation into the cause of the building collapse. He aimed at preventing similar incidents. The government required all old buildings with similar structures to undergo inspection, according to Secretary for Development Carrie Lam.

The government has confirmed that four people were dead in the incident. Rescue efforts ended on Saturday morning when the government confirmed that no one was missing. Lam visited the scene on Saturday afternoon and sought advice from the police and Buildings Department. The police has started its investigation into the incident. Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung said that the government would do its best to meet the victims’ needs.

The collapsed building was more than 50 years old. The government had inspected its five-storey structure before the incident and had ordered repairs. After the tragedy, the government announced that it would inspect buildings older than 50 years in one month. The government has restricted access to buildings at 45G and 45H as they were in danger.

Wednesday, February 7, 2007

The winner of the British television reality show Celebrity Big Brother, Shilpa Shetty expressed her gratitude to Prime Minister Tony Blair during a meeting at the U.K. Houses of Parliament.

The Bollywood actress observed prime minister’s question time in the Commons before meeting Mr Blair himself. She thanked him for his support, describing him as “very sweet.”

The visit took place following an invitation by Labour MP for Leicester South, Keith Vaz, who led calls for action against the treatment of Ms Shetty during her stint on the reality TV show. Celebrity Big Brother was criticised by public and politicians alike last month after Ms Shetty’s treatment by other contestants erupted in an international race row.

Today, she told reporters she had thanked the PM for his support “to me and my country”.

Her visit drew widespread media attention and she was greeted at Parliament by a media scuffle, including over 20 reporters from her native India.

“To see how so much respect has been bestowed upon me has truly been an honour,” she added.

According to organisers, the Commons chef had even prepared a special dessert in her honour “Shilpa’s delight” and she was also introduced to Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell.

The actress was crowned winner of Celebrity Big Brother, following confrontations with fellow housemates Jade Goody, Jo O’Meara and Danielle Lloyd who were accused of bullying and racism. Despite denying the claims, all three lost most of their major endorsements and Jade and Danielle’s partners are said to have left them.

Politicians became embroiled in the proceedings when media regulator Ofcom received more than 40,000 complaints from viewers.This resulted in the row reached both the House of Commons and India, where chancellor Gordon Brown’s bridge-building visit was overshadowed by controversy caused by the programme.

In the evening, Ms Shetty travelled to the city of Leicester to meet with members of Keith Vaz’ constituency. Reena Combo, editor of British Asian entertainment magazine Ikonz, was one of the guests. Ms Combo felt the visit would boost a sense of belonging amongst Leicester-South’s largely Asian population.

“I think it’s wonderful to see Shilpa Shetty taking the time to visit the people of Leicester. There has been a great deal of national interest in Shilpa since her appearance on Big Brother but many of the people here, especially the Asian community, have been fans of the Bollywood star for much longer so it’s nice to see her rewarding her loyal supporters.”

“She has over the last few weeks become an inspiration to many and become very much a part of British life.”

As yet, the Bollywood actress continues her tour of the country as an unofficial ambassador for the Indian film industry and has been invited to attend a Commonwealth reception at London’s Marlborough House on March 12, where she will be meeting with the Queen.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Buffalo, New York —Developer and CEO of Savarino Companies, Sam Savarino, has confirmed to Wikinews that he has bought, and is planning to restore a severely damaged stable and livery on Buffalo’s West Side. The building partially collapsed on June 11, which originally caused 15 homes to be evacuated.

Savarino bought the building from owner Bob Freudenheim for US$1.00 and states that he hopes to save as much of the building as possible, including the facade, at least 20 feet of the side walls, all of the back walls including the elevator tower and if possible all three floors. There is one major downside to the purchase; he inherits the over $400,000 tax lien against the property.

“It was a “NYS Lotto” purchase (‘a dollar and a dream’). I do inherit the City’s lien of $400,000 though,” stated Savarino to Wikinews. The fee is what the city has been billed for the limited demolition it paid for before Savarino bought the building. Currently the city is suing Freudenheim to force him to pay for those fees.

The building is currently undergoing minor demolition in preparations to make the rest of it stable. Once complete, Savarino plans to evaluate the extent of the damage and begin his plans to make the building into residential living spaces.

“Only unstable parts are being demolished. We will see what we have to deal with as the demolition proceeds but tentative plans are for living units on two floors with parking on the ground floor,” stated Savarino. Construction is expected to begin as early as this year, but “more than likely next year,” he added.

Originally the city ordered an emergency demolition on the building after Freudenheim gave them permission to demolish it on June 12 during an emergency Preservation Board meeting. His reason was because he would not be “rehabilitating the building anytime soon.”

Freudenheim, along with his wife Nina, were part-owners of the Hotel Lenox at 140 North Street in Buffalo and were advocates to stop the Elmwood Village Hotel from being built on the Southeast corner of Forest and Elmwood Avenues. They also financially supported a lawsuit in an attempt to stop the hotel from being built. Though it is not known exactly how long Freudenheim has owned the stable, Wikinews has learned that he was the owner while fighting to stop the hotel from being built. Residents say that he has been the owner for at least 22 years. Residents successfully halted demolition after winning a restraining order in New York State Supreme Court, which will continue to monitor developments in the case. The next hearing is scheduled for September 2.

Savarino states his project could cost at least $3,500,000 and before construction can begin, all plans must be approved by the city’s planning board.

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