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Victims Remembered As Black Box Search Resumes

Crews Return After Taking Night Off

POSTED: 11:22 am EDT September 13, 2001
UPDATED: 8:43 am EDT October 11, 2001

Volunteers led a prayer service Friday as investigators resumed searching for United Flight 93's second "black box" at a Somerset County crash site.

Salvation Army and Red Cross workers heeded President Bush's call for a national day of prayer by gathering near the crash site at noon. They prayed and sing "Amazing Grace."

In front of the workers were several items, including an American flag, a Pennsylvania flag, a 10-foot-tall wooden cross and a sign saying "Our prayers are with you." Stapled onto the sign were 45 red-white-and-blue ribbons -- one for each of the crash victims.

A short time later, U.S. Sens. Arlen Specter and Rick Santorum went to the same memorial and participated in a brief service with a rabbi, a Baptist minister and a Catholic priest. Pennsylvania's two senators then toured the wreckage.

"Let me say to the world and to America: Terrorism will never defeat the American people and the American spirit. The terrorists, all they've done is awakened a sleeping giant," said the Rev. Russ Kessler, pastor of Heritage Baptist Church in Somerset.

Bill Crowley of the FBI's Pittsburgh branch said that a box which records flight data was recovered from the crater left by Tuesday's terrorist hijacking and fatal crash in Somerset County, Pa. The item was taken to Washington, D.C. for analysis by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Crowley said investigation was suspended Thursday night to give federal and state investigators, forensic anthropologists and other scientists some time to rest. They returned to the heavily guarded area Friday and continued searching mapped-out 20-by-20-foot grids.

The flight-data recorder notes speed, altitude, engine activity and how other aircraft systems are operating. Crowley said he did not know in what condition the recorder was found, but hoped it would have some information about what happened before the crash.

The other black box, which is a cockpit voice recorder, is designed to capture at least the last 30 minutes of cockpit conversation. Crowley said that finding the item was a priority.

FBI Special Agent in Charge Roland Corvington has said that finding the voice-recorder black box is crucial to determining what went wrong on the plane, as it would have captured any conversations or struggles in the cockpit.

A light rain fell Thursday night and Friday morning. Crowley said that may turn out to be a good thing, because it may help settle the massive amounts of dust that were created when the plane crashed.

The dust had risen in clouds, then settled and covered much of the evidence. As a result, search crews have had difficulty determining the actual depth of the crater.

Crowley said a robotic helicopter developed by Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh had not been used to find the black box. The copter, which can create 3-D color images of the terrain, may be used at some point in the search, Crowley said.

A 10 a.m. press conference to provide updates was canceled. Another session was set for 4 p.m.

Search Extends Miles Past Crater

WTAE's Jim Parsons reported Wednesday that debris had been found miles off-site and removed by non-search party members. Crowley confirmed that debris was found in New Baltimore, Pa., which is 8 miles away from the crash scene, as well as Indian Lake, which is 2 1/2 miles away from the crash scene.

NTSB officials said the debris in New Baltimore is probably from the crash, according to Crowley.

The debris found in New Baltimore include paper and nylon, Crowley said. He said that the items are lightweight and can easily be carried by wind. At the time of the crash, there was wind speed of 9 knots per hour heading to the southeast, where both Indian Lake and New Baltimore are located.

Jim Brant, owner of Indian Lake Marina, said he rushed outside Tuesday morning when he heard the roar of jet engines overhead, then saw a fireball rise into the air. The wind was strong that morning, Brant said, and within minutes debris from the crash was "falling like confetti."

Also on Thursday, the Pennsylvania State Police arrested two photographers for breach of security. A police officer said that two stringers from New York City were given permission to take pictures of one portion of the crash scene, but they went into a restricted area and immediately were arrested.

State Police Maj. Lyle Szupinka said anyone who took debris would be prosecuted if the evidence is not returned. He said those people should call state police in Somerset at 814-445-4104.

Families Arrive; Service To Be Held

Families of crash victims began arriving Thursday at Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Champion, Pa. A memorial service at the steps of the Somerset County Courthouse was set for Friday evening.

United Airlines has set up a command post in the lodge of the ski resort, about 40 miles southeast of Pittsburgh and 25 miles west of the crash site.

With no practice set for Friday, several Steelers planned to travel to Somerset and attend the service.

Makeshift Morgue Established

A morgue has been established at the Pennsylvania National Guard Armory in Friedens, Pa., about 10 miles southwest of the crash site. Experts from as far away as Texas will help identify the bodies, using X-ray and DNA and dental analysis.

The equipment was hauled to the armory in a tractor-trailer. The equipment includes high-tech mortuary equipment.

"We've been going through this area inch by inch. The remains are beginning to come," said Somerset County coroner Wallace Miller. "It will be quite some time until we can identify whoever a person might be."

A forensic archaeologist from Mercyhurst College has arrived to help with the identification process.

Lawrence County Search

The FBI searched the apartment of a Arabic-speaking physician as part of the nationwide investigation into terrorist attacks. Click here for details.

Santorum Wants Campaign Against Terrorism

U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) said that a clear, deliberate and sustained campaign will be waged against terrorism in a Thursday interview with WTAE-TV anchor Scott Baker.

"When we're certain enough to take action and to convince our allies to assist in our effort, it won't be a one-time, limited strike on a couple of sites. That's been proven not to work," said Santorum about the perpetrators of the recent terroristic attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

"We must take on and defeat terrorism because it won't stop.

"The only true defense is to keep them moving so fast that they can't spend the time to attack on us.

"This is going to be a long-term commitment by this country to protect our shores."

Secretary of State Colin Powell had said earlier Thursday that Osama bin Laden is a prime suspect in the terrorist attacks.

Powell is the first senior administration official to say for the record that bin Laden is suspected of engineering the attacks.

Powell says he'll press the president of Pakistan for information on bin Laden's operations.

Two Arrested In Pittsburgh Bomb Threats

Two men were arrested Thursday for allegedly making bomb threats Tuesday on four major buildings in downtown Pittsburgh.

Police said that Jeffrey Zurman, 39, of Heidelberg, Pa., and Martin Provan, 37, of Bridgeville, Pa., made the calls from a pay phone at a South Fayette Township bar at about 10:08 p.m. Tuesday, the same day terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Police said that the callers claimed that there were bombs at the Allegheny County Courthouse, the City-County Building, PPG Plaza and the USX Tower.

Police said that Provan admitted that the calls were a hoax when police said they needed to know immediately if the threats were real.

3 Arrests Reported

Pennsylvania State Police reported that three arrests were made near the crash site.

At 6 p.m. Wednesday, two people were arrested. They were found in possession of photo equipment and drugs.

Another arrest was made relating to a disorderly conduct incident.

Pittsburgh International Taking Flight

WTAE's Ellen Gamble reported that the nation's airlines reopened Thursday on a limited basis.

The FAA ban was lifted at 11 a.m. Planes were taking off from Pittsburgh International Airport at 12:18 p.m. Partial domestic service is to resume by mid-afternoon.

Click here for details.

Previous Local Stories:

Sept. 12, 2001:
  • Alleged Partial Flight 93 Cockpit Transcript Obtained
  • FBI Searches New Castle Apartment
  • Pittsburgh International Airport Revamping Security
  • FBI Interested In Local Townhouse, Car
  • Westmoreland County Man Among Crash Victims
  • Munhall Woman's Brother Calls From WTC Rubble
  • Sept. 11, 2001:
  • Plane Crashes In Somerset County
  • Flight 93 Passenger Said He Planned Action
  • Cities Knew Plane Was Coming, But Not Where
  • Tearful Ridge Promises Help From Pa.
  • State Watches, Reacts As Attacks Unfold

  • WTAE-TV Pittsburgh on Facebook

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