Remembering Flight 3407

Every Western New Yorker remembers where they were when they heard the news the evening of February 12, 2009.

"I was coming back from officiating a St. Bonaventure basketball game in Olean, and I remember telling my referee partner the evening felt especially gloomy," said Regional Disaster Officer, Ken Turner, of the night Continental Connection Flight 3407 crashed in Clarence, NY. "When I heard there had been a plane crash, I immediately called Tara Hughes, and she told me she was expecting my call."

Tara Hughes is the American Red Cross, Northeast Division Disaster Mental Health Advisor. She knew it would be her job to work with airline and emergency officials to set up a Family Assistance Center: a safe, private place for families of the 50 people who lost their lives in the crash to gather for information and support.

On Monday, a wreath was laid and 50 carnations placed on
the crypt at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo in honor of the
50 lives lost in the crash of Flight 3407 February 12, 2009.
Photo courtesy: Tara Hughes, American Red Cross

"I immediately went to Clarence, but officials starting busing families to the Cheektowaga Senior Center," Hughes remembers. 

"My second call was to Sister Martha (Olszewski)," Turner added. "By the time I got to the Senior Center, she was already there!"

Hughes would soon join them, and was instrumental in moving the Family Assistance Center to the Hotel Indigo about 2 p.m. the next day. For the next several days, the Indigo was the place families received updates from officials while Red Cross volunteers provided comfort and support, all away from the hoards of media and public officials. When the initial operations began winding down, Disaster Mental Health volunteers like Hughes, Sister Martha, and Peggy McGee-Smith helped the Families of Flight 3407 form a support group that would meet formally for the next seven years.

"Sometimes we would lead the discussion, other times the families would start talking and we wouldn't say a word until it was time to leave," Hughes says. 

Even though the support group stopped formally meeting three years ago, the bonds remain strong. This summer, the Families of Flight 3407 asked Hughes to be one of only three speakers at a vigil on the ten year anniversary of the tragedy, joining Deborah Hersman, Chair of the National Transportation Safety Board during the investigation into the crash, and "Miracle on the Hudson" First Officer, Jeff Skiles. Sister Martha will be leading the opening prayer at Zion Church in Clarence Center Tuesday evening, then she and Hughes will join the families on a candlelight walk to the memorial at the crash site, where at 10:18 p.m.--the time of the crash--the names of all 50 lives lost will be read.

"There's been a family that has been created out of this tragedy. Membership in a club they didn't ask to be a part of, but are now best friends," says Hughes. "They've brought in as family members, too. We have dinner every Christmas!" 

The Red Cross is proud to have been there for the Families of Flight 3407 for the past ten years, and to continue to support them today, thanks to amazing volunteers like Tara, Sister Martha, and Peggy. 

"May they never be forgotten."

-Jay Bonafede, Regional Communications Officer

 

Remembering Flight 3407

Five years ago tonight, I was working in the sports office of a Buffalo television station when one of our "regulars" called and said that a plane had crashed near his home in Clarence. I took that information to our news desk and was told they had little information but a crew was on the way. I went back to my sports office and tuned in the live shot, waiting for the pictures of what I assumed to be a small plane crash to be sent back to the newsroom. When the crew arrived and a picture came up, I said, "Oh my God, that's a Continental tail." The rest of the evening, and really the next several days, were a blur as we learned more about the Crash of Flight 3407.

Red Cross Disaster Mental Health Volunteer Sister Martha Olszewski got a call about a small plane crash that evening. She was eventually asked to report to the Senior Center on Broadway, which was where the Family Support Center--a private location for family members of the 50 people on-board Flight 3407 to receive information--was set up, and where she worked through the evening until 10am the next morning.

"It was just talking to family members about loved ones on the plane," Sr. Martha said. "Just doing my 'Sister Martha' thing, serving coffee and donuts, talking to the people who needed it."

Flight 3407 Memorial in Clarence Center, NY

That was Sr. Martha's only real contact with the family in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy. She spent the next 14 days working at the Clarence Fire Hall, supporting coroners, fire, police and other first responders that were on the scene. In the five year since Flight 3407, she has worked with the family support group, and says this anniversary is difficult on everybody.

"Every time you come to a significant year, it becomes more intense. Five years seems like yesterday," she says. "They have worked through some of their grief, but there's still an empty hole they're dealing with."

Both Sister Martha and NYS Disaster Mental Health Lead Tara Hughes will speak about their efforts as part of the Red Cross response to the tragedy during tonight's vigil to remember the victims of Flight 3407.

"The families designed this ceremony not only to remember the lives lost, but also to thank everyone for their assistance during their time of need," Sr. Martha said.

The thoughts of all of us at the Red Cross are with the families of Flight 3407 on this difficult day, and we thank the volunteers like Sr. Martha and Tara who allow us to be a small part of the supporting community.

Kenneth Turner Named Chief Program Officer for WNY Region

29-year staff member managed October Surprise and Flight 3407 response

Chief Program Officer Kenneth Turner

BUFFALO, NY, February 5, 2013 – Regional Executive Director Nancy Blaschak has announced the appointment of Kenneth Turner as Chief Program Officer for the American Red Cross, Western New York Region. A 29-year staff member, Turner will oversee disaster services as well as community service programs for the eight counties in Western New York. In addition, Turner will oversee disaster services for the Finger Lakes region, which encompasses the Greater Rochester Area.

“I am so pleased to be able to make this announcement today,” Blaschak said. “Ken has done an amazing job directing our Emergency Services department, and I know he will do the same for our Services to Seniors, HIV/AIDS Services and other community service programs moving forward.”

Turner has been with the Red Cross for 29 years, most recently serving as Senior Director of Emergency Services. Turner served as Operations Manager for the Red Cross response to the October Surprise Storm of 2006 and the crash of Flight 3407 in 2009. In the fall of 2011 Turner served as the Assistant Director for the Red Cross response to Tropical Strom Lee and Hurricane Irene in the Lower Hudson Valley, and he led the Western New York regional planning for and response to Hurricane Sandy last October.

“Accepting this position is a great honor for me,” Turner said. “It has been my privilege to be a part of the Red Cross for almost three decades now, and I look forward to working with our amazing staff and volunteers to help the Western New York community prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters for years to come.”

A graduate of Buffalo State College, Turner also holds a certificate from the Clara Barton Institute of Domestic Preparedness in weapons of mass destruction. The Buffalo resident also works as an NCAA Division I college basketball referee.