Hometown News: Flight 3407 News Summary

Crews have removed nearly half of the plane of Continental connection Flight 3407 from the crash site in Clarence. The pieces are being placed into bins and then onto trailers in order to move them to other locations. Officials hope to have everything cleared out by tomorrow afternoon in anticipation of snow coming to the area. Crews have found five of six de-icing valves, which could help determine whether the de-icing system was working at the time of the crash.

Just a minute or two before Continental Flight 3407 crashed, it was coasting in on autopilot at about 154-miles-an-hour. Just 30 seconds later it was dropping at a rate 20-times faster than normal, falling about 800 feet in just five seconds. The last recorded data showed the plane 250 feet above ground, going 115-miles-an-hour, less than five seconds before impact. Data from flight recorders suggest that the plane automatically attempted to add speed to the plane and increase lift to avoid a stall.

For the first time yesterday, family members of the victims were able to visit the crash site. About 100 people were shuttled to the site with a police escort, where they placed flowers, cards, teddy bears and other personal items. Family members were able to stay for about an hour.