Of the 154 people on board Flight 255, 110 were from Arizona. One of the passengers on Northwest Airlines Flight 255, which crashed shortly after takeoff from Detroit . Cecelias aunt and uncle later raised her in Birmingham, Ala. and shielded her from the spotlight. Wreckage of Northwest Flight 255 lay strewn across Middlebelt Road after the Aug. 16, 1987, crash. The Getty Images design is a trademark of Getty Images. Takeoff initiated on Runway 3C at approximately 8:45 PM with a speed of 170 knots / 195 MPH. The sole survivor of the crash who now is 29, has been moving on with her life, shielded from the spotlight while preferring privacy. and flaps not extended. You think about how much youve missed over the years. She also had a fractured skull, a broken collarbone and other broken bones. She was found buckled up in her seat several rows away from her parents and brother. A granite monument honors those killed when Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashed on Aug. 16, 1987. , also is a marker to the crash victims from the first responders who were called to the scene. NTSB-AAR-88-05 She was mad at her Dad and he was mad at her, the mother said. Bill was the star of the family who loved basketball. I took a couple of moments and just stood there, said Barton, 30. Crew's failure to use taxi checklist to What are the odds?. We gather to remember not because they died, but because they lived, Zanger added. Do you want me to come out there? David asked. passenger flight and was en route to Phoenix, Arizona, with 149 Rhett Bushong finally had it worked out. Cecelia Crocker, nee Cichan, was 4 years old when the airliner went down shortly after takeoff near Detroit Metropolitan Airport on a Sunday night in 1987. According to information extracted from the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), engine power began increasing at 2044:21. He took her out in his boat and they water-skied on Lake Erie. Karl Sup, a computer software engineer for JDA Software in Scottsdale, remembers friend Mike Sullivan who was among 156 people killed in the crash of Northwest Flight 255 on August 16, 1987 as it . Testas daughter-in-law, Valerie Geiger, 36, and her two granddaughters, Lisa, 7, and Lauren Geiger, 5, also died in the crash. Now, exactly 25 years after the disaster that claimed the lives of her parents and six-year-old brother, she has spoken for the first time about her experience. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, Guestbook Lack of electrical power Aircraft: McDonnell Douglas Super MD-80 (MD-82) A single Associated Press photo of the girl was released a few months after the crash, showing her with bandages on her arms and a bow on her head while she was being treated at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor and she disappeared from public life after that. They were in Monroe, Michigan, visiting family and friends the weekend of August 16, 1987 and were killed on the crash of Northwest Flight 255 in Romulus, Mich. returning home that evening. -- WING FLAPS: The DC-9`s wing flaps and slats were not used during takeoff, dooming the flight from the start. AirSafetyOnline.com. He was traveling a lot and doing well. He was the father of a 5-year-old son, Ryan, at the time of his death. their lives when the plane crashed into a bridge on I-94 in Romulus. Operator: Northwest Airlines, Inc. Tap into Getty Images' global scale, data-driven insights, and network of more than 340,000 creators to create content exclusively for your brand. A picture taken on July 17, 2014, shows the wreckage of the Malaysian airliner after it crashed near the town of Shaktarsk in rebel-held eastern Ukraine. We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. There was nothing but a total ball of fire under the bridge, Joel Taylor, another motorist, told Cable News Network. consultant to an aircraft company. Romulus Dee Murdy knew just after the plane crashed. Although Cecelia has never attended one of the memorial services involving the plane crash, she often reaches out to family members of the crash victims who died. Disclaimer: I must start out by saying that my heart goes out to the victims and their surviving friends and relatives. News-Herald file photo by Larry Caruso. On Thursday, at Sisk Park in the Sun Lakes community in Chandler near South Alma School and Riggs roads, Rosemarie Geiger Testa, the mother of Ron Geiger, 36, who was on the flight with his family, will hold a memorial picnic for family members and Geigers friends. An investigation found a that warning system had failed to alert pilots Captain John R. Maus, 57, and First Officer David J. Dodds, 35, that the plane was not configured properly for take-off. I guess this can be our engagement ring, she said. The Weavers were neighbors and friends of William Bill and Kathryn Kathy Best, who welcomed them to the neighborhood in 1985. We have healed over the years, but healing doesnt mean forgetting., ROMULUS, Mich. Family members of those who died in a plane crash near Detroit Metropolitan Airport 25 years ago held a memorial Thursday nig. Joanne Surowitz awoke last Sunday morning in a Detroit suburb, anticipating that by days end she would be reunited with her family in their new Tustin home. Images of Flight 255 still haunt Michigan On May 25, 1979, one of the most horrifying disasters in Chicago and American history took place at O'Hare International Airport when American Airlines Flight 191 literally fell from the sky, killing all of the 271 passengers and crew on board. They were heading back to Phoenix, Arizona from Michigan after celebrating Paulas birthday at her parents home. On the phone, Joanne Surowitz tried to cheer up her younger brother, Brian. We were serving a Northwest pilot and his family dinner and when it happened, he ran out screaming.. I turned around and went back to the truck, because it was just too hot., You ever seen one of those gory movies? Valasquez asked. that is degrading to another person. Now, 25 years later, she has decided to tell her story as part of a new documentary called Sole Survivor featuring passengers who lived through plane crashes against all odds. A black granite memorial now sits at the top of the hill at Middlebelt Road and I-94. Flight 255, a McDonnell Just to see her in person was something., Filmmaker Ky Dickens said: Cecelia is an astounding person, a humble observer and an inspiring example of how one can pick up their life after a tragedy.. (Photo courtesy Tony Zanger). It was sick., Atkins said there was little they could do. Oct 24, 2021 at 12:00 am. 156* Fatal, 2 Serious, 4 Minor. Outside of Phoenix City Hall, there is a memorial containing the names of those who died on Northwest Flight 255. Cichan discussed the crash for "Sole Survivor," an upcoming documentary featuring stories of plane crash survivors. Click 16, 1987, Northwest Airlines, Inc., flight 255 crashed shortly As Joanne and David began to leave, her grandmother cried. William Wilder, a San Clemente engineer, was in the Detroit airport reading a Western novel but did not hear the Flight 255 boarding announcement, realizing too late that the plane had left. to the aircraft takeoff warning system. Tonight, at the former. racist or sexually-oriented language. On the 25th anniversary of the Flight 255 crash, Detroiters and loved ones of the 156 individuals who died will gather to mark the occasion at a memorial service honoring the victims. heaven. She underwent four skin grafts for the burns on her arms and legs. Its mostly on my mind because of the tight bond we developed with the Flight 255 families.. It was the first time he had seen her since he rescued her on Middlebelt Road. It was such a traumatic event for the entire community., Suzanne Weaver added: They were enthusiastic and very friendly. A memorial for the plane in Romulus was put up to remember and honor the victims. The Best family, including their four-month-old daughter, Katelyn, died in the crash. Cecelia became known as the miracle child and her story captivated the world. The plane was leaving the Detroit Metropolitan-Wayne County Airport for Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport that evening. His wife, waiting nervously at John Wayne Airport for news of the severity of the Northwest crash, never knew of her husbands inattentiveness--and good fortune--until she spotted him in the Orange County terminal arriving on another airline from Detroit. Flight 255, bound for Phoenix and then Orange County, was airborne only a few moments before it exploded into a fiery ball of jet fuel, metal and body parts on a Detroit highway at the end of Runway 3C. The Crash. Bound for Phoenix and continuing on to Orange County, the DC-9 was carrying 148* passengers and six crew members. The plane was turned on its side with its wings almost perpendicular to the ground, Webb said. They were so much fun, and when we realized they were on that plane, it greatly affected us. More than 30 of the passengers were under 25. Statenews.com Amid the carnage and the other 154 people who had perished, miraculously one tiny passenger was still alive. Kathy Best also had once saved the Weavers son by pulling him out of the Weavers family pool seconds after he fell in it. The passengers left the plane; some transferred to flights bound for Los Angeles International Airport. The sole survivor was a 4-year-old girl who sustained serious injuries. I was checking on people, but Im not a medical examiner. It looked like he had a hard time taking off. Other monuments can be found at City Hall in Phoenix, Arizona, in memory of the many passengers who were from that area, and at the General Motors Proving Ground in Milford. About 10 people boarded the plane in Phoenix. KK: Tell us about the crash. She planned to spend a month in Orange County before returning for her freshman year at Michigan State. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Want to solve climate change? In total 156 people died, including two on the ground. But luck works both ways and last Sunday in Detroit was no different. Notifications from this discussion will be disabled. STAFF FILE PHOTO BY . Luck--the explanation for the unexplainable twists and turns that spare some from disasters--was evident here, too. Flight 255 was a commercial passenger flight that originated from Saginaw, Michigan and was scheduled to end in Santa Ana, California, with two planned stops at Detroit Metropolitan Airport and also Phoenix, Arizona. He wanted to go into sports medicine and attending Saddleback College was the first step, said his father, Reid Bushong, a science teacher at a Newport Beach middle school. And nowhere does it live on stronger than in Cecelia, the miracle survivor of Flight 255. or anything. Killed on the ground from the crash: Eddie Galloway, Detroit. By. some selection of actual air disaster voice recordings. Among the 150 passengers and crew on board the crashed Germanwings flight were babies, exchange students, two . Seconds later, it crashed and exploded into a ball of flames. Contributing to the accident was the absence of electrical power to the airplane takeoff warning system which thus did not warn the flight crew that the airplane was not configured properly for takeoff. All you could see was the street glitter with flames, she said. Cecelia Cichan was just four when she became the sole survivor of doomed Northwest Airlines Flight 255 . Northwest Airlines, ROMULUS, Mich. (WJBK) - 31 years ago Thursday, Northwest. On August 16, 1987 a McDonnell Douglas MD-82, operating as Northwest Airlines Flight 255, crashed shortly after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, about 8:46 pm EDT (00:46 UTC August 17), resulting in the deaths of all six crew members and 148 of the 149 passengers, along with two people on the ground. Cecelia Cichan was just four years old when she became the sole survivor of doomed Northwest Airlines Flight 255. Flying never bothered the 45-year-old nurse. Be Nice. At the time, the crash was the second worst in U.S. history. In a Oct. 9, 1987 file photo, Cecelia Cichan sits on her hospital bed before her release from the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, Mich. Cichan was the lone survivor on board the Northwest Airlines flight 255 that crashed Aug. 16, 1987 at Detroit Metropolitan Airport. . Two seconds later, we saw the smoke about two miles down., Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Northwest Airlines Flight 255. Northwest Flight 255, bound for Arizona, went down after takeoff from the Detroit Metro Airport on August 16, 1987. We miss them and have been thinking about them lately.. BW: This was the Northwest Airlines Flight 255 that, unfortunately, lost control upon takeoff on August 16, 1987, around 9 p.m. (Detroit). Among other victims were all five members of the William Best family of Mesa including the youngest 4-month-old Katelyn Best; all four members of the Ronald Geiger family of Gilbert; and all four members of the Donald Byelich family of Chandler. That was it. On August 16, 2007, the twentieth anniversary of the crash, a memorial service was held at the site. A memorial event is scheduled for Thursday in Romulus, The Detroit News reported. Two more people in a car were killed near the crash site. She returned to the Northwest counter the next night, choosing a seat for the same flight with the same number. Flight 255 carried 149 passengers and six crew members. Her parents and brother were among the 154 on board the plane who died. Flight 447 also claimed the lives of three Irish doctors, named locally as Eithne Walls, from . Helios Airways Flight 522 was a scheduled passenger flight from Larnaca, Cyprus, to Prague, Czech Republic, with a stopover in Athens, Greece.Shortly after take-off on 14 August 2005, air traffic control (ATC) lost contact with the aircraft operating the flight, named Olympia; it eventually crashed near Grammatiko, Greece, killing all 121 passengers and crew on board. People observe a candlelight . Zanger is among about six people organizing Thursdays 25th anniversary memorial in Michigan where more than 200 people are expected to attend. When this happened, it was unbelievable, Craig Weaver said. The sole survivor was a 4-year-old girl, Cecelia Cichan, who sustained serious injuries. Northwest Now, Continental officials were telling passengers there was a problem with one of the planes wings. She showed her the sweat shirt she had bought for her new boyfriend--stenciled with his name, Jim, on one side, and the make of his motorcycle, Honda, on the other--back in Santa Ana. (AP Photo/Dale Atkins). We reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. No release date has been set yet. ROMULUS, Mich. -- Numbed and voices low, relatives of the victims of Northwest Airlines Flight 255 began arriving Monday to claim their dead. The engaged couple, who worked as travel agents for a subsidiary of American Express and had moved to Phoenix in March of 1987, were killed on Northwest flight 255. It went down in history at the time as the second worst aviation disaster in the U.S. with everyone aboard killed except for one person, then 4-year-old Cecelia Cichan of Tempe, Arizona. Follow him on Facebook and @ScottHeld45 on Twitter. AIRLINES, INC. accident occurred Sunday, August 16, 1987 at Romulus, I travel that spot about four to seven times a week. I want to send my heartfelt thoughts to the families and friends of victims of Flight 255, and especially to Mr. and Mrs. Dan Turner. There's a name for Friedman and other relatives of Flight 255 victims. They knew little of what had happened beyond what appeared on the Northwest flight announcement screen: Canceled Flight. The sole survivor of the crash: 4-year-old Cecelia Cichan (now Cecelia Crocker) formerly of Tempe. With no controls available to the pilots, the aircraft crashed in an inverted form along Middle Belt Road, affecting vehicles traveling just south at the Wick Road intersection. As rescuers picked through the smoking wreckage of a crashed airliner, the faintest of cries was carried on the night air. Her incredible story started on August 16, 1987, when she was returning from a holiday with mum Paula, dad Michael and brother, David, six. The trip back on Flight 255 would add several thousand miles to his frequent flier plan for a free ticket. She knew her friend, Bonnie Monary, was planning to meet the Continental flight. Northwest Airlines Flight 255 is one of the deadliest aviation crashes in the nation. It was the nation's second-worst aviation disaster. The faces of some of the passengers on board the Airbus 320. ROYAL OAK, MI On Aug. 16, 1987, the grassy banks of Middlebelt Road in Romulus near . Report No. Image 1 of 5. . At dawn today, investigators shuttled in and out of the floodlit site where the MD-80 bound for Phoenix, Ariz., and suburban Los Angeles crashed, killing at least 152 of 153 people on board, and two more on the ground. Within minutes, the plane began to roll from side to side just under 50 feet off the ground and nearly 2,800 feet past the end of the runway, the planes left wing struck a light pole at an airport rental car lot. She will speak out about the crash for the first time in a forthcoming documentary, Sole Survivor, about the sole survivors of plane crashes. If it wasnt for him hearing that, who knows? Thiede said. Cecelia Crocker, nee Cichan, was the only survivor of Northwest Flight 255, which crashed after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Aug. 16, 1987. Rotating to the left an additional 90 degrees, it struck the southeastern corner of the Avis Car Rental building. Its like an empty hole that cant be filled. person will not be tolerated. They call themselves the "Flight 255 family." Twenty-five times now, they've gathered at a memorial near the crash site off the expressway. She was sent thousands of gifts, cards and stuffed animals. The two went together to have Lisas bridesmaids dress fitted. Resources | Ill see you tomorrow, she told him the night before she was scheduled to fly west to the familys new home in north Tustin. Use the 'Report' link on The plane then rolled 90 degrees the opposite way and sheared off most of the right wing when it struck the roof of an Avis rental-car franchise near Middlebelt Road. Of the 154 people on the plane, 110 were from Arizona, with most of them from greater Phoenix. 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