Clarence Center, N.Y. (WBEN) - Monday marked 15 years since the tragic crash of Continental Flight 3407, operated by Colgan Air, that claimed the lives of 51 people in the late evening hours of Feb. 12, 2009 along Long Street in Clarence Center.
On the 15-year anniversary, the Families of Flight 3407 gathered at the crash site memorial to honor and remember their loved ones, as well as the others who perished with them that evening. For many of the family members on-hand, this anniversary was more emotional than first anticipated.
"It's not just that this is the day 15 years ago when we lost our daughter, it's being here with all the other people who also lost loved ones. It kind of brings back the extreme sadness of that day," said Marilyn Kausner, who lost her daughter Ellyce in the crash. "We're good, we're a resilient, resilient group of people, but this is a tough day for us."
"I've been here in the summer, in the winter, at every anniversary. But tonight, with the sirens going off from the fire company a few houses down answering an emergency call like they did that night; and I was counting, I think there were seven planes flew over, and any one of those could have dropped out of the sky like ours did. It was just a different feeling today, but really warm having all our families together," said Karen Eckert, who lost her sister Beverly on that night 15 years ago. "We feel good when we're together. We're sad, but we feel this love."
When remembering her daughter, Kausner says it was her vibrancy that still stands out 15 years following her passing.
"I remember she was so funny, she was smart, she was sensitive. She had friends who had lost loved ones, and I was always impressed by how deeply she cared about that, and how she went out of her way to recognize their loss," Kausner said. "When I think back on that, I always think somehow she knew. She said to her boyfriend the night of the crash, 'If anything happens to me, will you take care of my cats?' That was a half an hour before she died, so I think they knew somehow. I don't know."
As for Eckert, she says her sister was a 9/11 widow, having lost her husband in the collapse of the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. She says after the efforts her sister put forth following her husband's death, it was time for her and her other sister, Susan, to go to bat for Beverly.
"She was smart, funny, pretty talented. She never thought that something like that would happen to her. And when Sean [Rooney] was killed and what happened on 9/11, she became a leader of the 9/11 families in Washington. When she died and this happened to her, a completely preventable crash, my sister, Susan, and I, we knew what we had to do. We just stood up and we said, 'We have to go and change this so that it doesn't happen again,'" she said.
Monday's anniversary also marked the passing of another year - 15 in all - without a single fatal U.S. commercial airplane crash. This remarkable achievement is a testament to the effectiveness of the landmark safety reforms enacted in the wake of the Flight 3407 tragedy with the Airline Safety and FAA Reauthorization Act of 2010.
The families say they draw comfort from this extraordinary safety record, knowing the legacy of their loved ones has helped shape safer air travel for all across the country.
"It's so rewarding for us to know that our efforts, our hard work, our determination, 'I guess we've got to pack up and go to Washington again, and write 100 more letters and make 15 more calls'. It's mattered. It's mattered a great deal to an entire nation full of people who probably don't know how much our work has impacted them and their lives. But I feel like it's the most beautiful legacy to the people who died," Kausner said.
"People count lives that are killed in something, but when they've saved lives, and that's the problem: There's no quantitative thing except we can say there hasn't been a fatal crash on U.S. soil of a commercial airliner in 15 years. It means it's working," added Eckert.
Families of Flight 3407 also say they owe a debt of gratitude to the Western New York members of the U.S. House of Representatives over the years, including the likes of Brian Higgins, Nick Langworthy and Claudia Tenney. Their support and hard work in Washington, D.C. ensured the safety standards from the 2010 legislation were preserved in the House FAA Reauthorization bill.
Rep. Langworthy was on-hand Monday to honor and remember the lives lost 15 years ago with the Families of Flight 3407. He says he still remembers that night vividly as a Congressional staffer, at the time, working for former Congressman Chris Lee. Looking back, he remembers Feb. 12, 2009 as one of the toughest things he's ever done as a member of any Congressional staff.
"It's difficult to put into words just how heartbreaking it was to witness so many families torn apart. It was such a wound inflicted on our community. As we saw the wreckage, we attended funerals and formed enduring bonds with the families who bear the weight of unimaginable loss. We all carry the pain from that day, but none of us more than you, the Families of Flight 3407," said Congressman Langworthy on Monday. "For the past 15 years, these families have shown us that strength can come out of pain. Their heartbreak has been transformed into passion to ensure that other families have not, and hopefully will not ever have to experience that same pain again."
While Monday was a day of remembrance, Langworthy commended the actions of the Families of Flight 3407 for their work in the nation's capital, and their continued actions to ensure the safety of flights all across the country since that tragic day 15 years ago.
"In one of the darkest hours of your lives, you went to Washington D.C. and demanded change. This is what our democracy is supposed to be all about," Langworthy said. "Every Representative and Senator involved in aviation policy have heard from you. They know you, they know many of you by face. And every time airline safety is brought up, your voices echo in the halls of Congress. We will not settle for anything less than the highest standard of airline safety. You, as the families, have been successful in pushing Congress to enact a new level of airline safety in the United States, the envy of all the world. It should be a world standard in aviation safety."
The families also thank U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who has been a stalwart champion of their cause for the 15 years since the accident. They say his tireless efforts have been pivotal in preserving the integrity of the safety standards outlined in the 2010 legislation and in the pending Senate FAA Reauthorization bill.
Furthermore, Families of Flight 3407 extend their gratitude to the Senate Commerce Committee leadership for their efforts to keep these same safety standards intact.
Related
In honor of the lives lost in the crash and in a commitment to aviation safety, the families are urging Congress to act swiftly and complete the final steps necessary to ensure the pending FAA bill is enacted prior to the expiration of the current extension on March 8, 2024.
Both the House and the Senate bills preserve the 2010 safety standards and strengthen additional safety measures which address the hiring and training of air traffic controllers and airplane certification concerns.
This was something that topped Langworthy's priorities when he got to Washington in 2022, and says he will continue to fight with the Families of Flight 3407 every step of the way.
"I was proud to lock arms with Brian Higgins, our now former member of Congress, and Congresswoman Claudia Tenney, and we took on members of both parties that wanted to see change, or thought this was something they could negotiate for based on something else they wanted in the FAA authorization. This was the red line that we would not let them cross, and I am so proud we were able to amend that bill, over the wishes of a powerful committee chairman, to make sure that the standards stay in place," he said.
Although it's been 15 years since the tragic crash of Flight 3407, the families are willing to continue their fight in Washington, working to ensure their loved ones will forever have an impact on anyone who fly commercially in the United States.
"I've been thinking about how hard it is to keep pressing on, but at this point, we have invested so much time, so much money, frankly, we pay for all of our own trips there and all of our hotels. The emotional energy, and the reward of no plane crashes, how do you give up now? We can't back up now. We've come too far, and the proof is in. Why would we stop now?," said Kausner.
"If anything happens to somebody and it was so wrong, you know you have to do it. And when we started the journey, we knew it would be hard. We knew it would be kind of long, I don't think we thought 15 years. And the fact that we've had to fight; this week, we fought so hard to get where we are. It is a legacy," added Eckert. "I think of all the life saved, I think if someone died, like all these beautiful people on this plane, we saved lives because of it. It's certainly worth it. But it's just something that we have to do."
Despite the emotions of the anniversary and it tough reading off the names every year at the crash site, Kausner feels the efforts made by the Families of Flight 3407 to this day speak to the Western New York community as "Buffalo Strong".
"When it gets tough, we come together as a community and we do what needs to be done," she said. "We're used to hard times in this town that we live in. We have rough weather, we've had some tough economic times, but we have heart here. And when push comes to shove, we do what needs to be done, and we do the right thing. I think that's what we are all about."
The Families of Flight 3407 group was immediately organized after the crash as a support network and an activist group to work on aviation safety reform. You can visit the group's website at www.3407memorial.com.
