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Local first responder recalls Flight 427 crash after airplane collides with helicopter in D.C.

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PITTSBURGH — Emergency responders are trained for all different kinds of incidents. From water rescues along the rivers to everything in between. WPXI talked to two local experts about what the first responders in D.C. might be going through including, one man who was a first responder when Flight 427 crashed in our area 30 years ago.

“It’s probably the largest, most devastating scene I’ve ever had to attend,” said Darryl Jones.

Before he was the Pittsburgh Fire Chief, Jones spent 20 years as a firefighter in Aliquippa. The night of Sept. 8, 1994 is one he’ll never forget. USAir flight 427 crashed while it was trying to land at the Pittsburgh airport, killing 127 passengers and five crew members.

Jones said, “I do think about the incident that I was on and I compare them and the thing that bothers me the most is no survivors. As a first responder everything is trained to go out and save a life. "

In D.C., an American Airlines flight was headed to land at the Ronald Reagan National Airport Wednesday night when a midair collision with an Army helicopter killed all 67 people aboard the two aircrafts. The crash happened over the Potomac River - which is where water rescue crews continue their efforts.

Darrick Gerano with the Murrysville Medic One Dive Team says he can only imagine what divers in the nation’s capitol are dealing with.

“Probably the most difficult thing would be the unknown because you can’t see a lot and then once you get underwater you definitely can’t see. Many different types of hazards in there in the water you know the structure of the planes, the biohazards and jet fuel,” Gerano said.

Both Gerano and Jones say crews are likely working on adrenaline right now.

“When you look at something of this magnitude you have to worry about the long term hazards and a lot of these people at the end of the day they gotta go home and they’re taking this home with them. It’s not just something you can shut off overnight so you have to worry about the emotional stress it puts on the rescuers,” Gerano added.

Jones said, “We all have a little bit of post traumatic stress and we manage it in different ways. Psychological safety is a big issue now.”

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