Charedi Young Lady Suffers Serious Head Injury In Air Canada Collision

 

Among the injured in the collision between an Air Canada airplane and a firetruck at LaGuardia airport is a young charedi woman who suffered a severe head injury. Her name for prayer is Ariela Avigail bat Dina Tzipora. She sat in the seat directly behind the cockpit

The fire truck crossed the runway after receiving permission to approach the aircraft following a report of a bad smell on board. Before the collision, an air traffic controller could be heard over airport communications urgently instructing the fire truck to stop.

About 40 passengers and crew members on the plane were evacuated to hospitals, some with serious injuries. Most of them have since been released, authorities said.

The fire vehicle had been authorized to drive onto the runway. In a recording from the airport radio network, a control tower operator is heard speaking with the vehicle’s driver moments before the collision, then suddenly shouting: “Stop, stop, stop. Vehicle 1, stop, stop, stop.” The vehicle did not stop, and the plane struck it. Two people who were in the vehicle were injured.

In another recording after the accident, the control tower operator is heard speaking with a pilot on the ground and saying, “I messed up.” The conversation was with a pilot from Frontier Airlines who was waiting to return to the gate and witnessed the crash. The pilot replied: “It’s okay, man, you did the best you could.”