Ethiopian Families Mourn Plane Crash Victims
- 14 years ago
Ethiopian families mourned the death of loved ones who were among 90 people aboard an Ethiopian Airlines plane. It is believed that no one survived the horrific crash after the plane plunged into the Mediterranean, shortly after takeoff in Beirut.
A DJ at a local radio station lost his wife in the crash and is now left with their children. He was comforted by friends and relatives as he anxiously waited for information.
[Giouanni Francioni, Relative of Plane Crash Victim]:
"There is nothing, we have not heard anything, whether they have found her body or not. No one is giving us information; even the airline isn't saying anything. So now we are just sitting and waiting."
A team of investigators from Ethiopia, including Ethiopian Airlines officials, are in Beirut. Boeing said it was coordinating with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board to assist Lebanese authorities in the inquiry.
Lebanese and international search teams scoured the Mediterranean coast for the victims and missing flight recorders. But hopes of finding any survivors have faded.
Flight ET409 was carrying mostly Lebanese and Ethiopian passengers. It was headed to the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa before it apparently broke up in the air and crashed into the sea during a pre-dawn thunderstorm on Monday.
A DJ at a local radio station lost his wife in the crash and is now left with their children. He was comforted by friends and relatives as he anxiously waited for information.
[Giouanni Francioni, Relative of Plane Crash Victim]:
"There is nothing, we have not heard anything, whether they have found her body or not. No one is giving us information; even the airline isn't saying anything. So now we are just sitting and waiting."
A team of investigators from Ethiopia, including Ethiopian Airlines officials, are in Beirut. Boeing said it was coordinating with the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board to assist Lebanese authorities in the inquiry.
Lebanese and international search teams scoured the Mediterranean coast for the victims and missing flight recorders. But hopes of finding any survivors have faded.
Flight ET409 was carrying mostly Lebanese and Ethiopian passengers. It was headed to the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa before it apparently broke up in the air and crashed into the sea during a pre-dawn thunderstorm on Monday.