PlatinumOdyssey 10 Report Share Posted October 11, 2006 Just saw this on MSN... [ QUOTE ] NEW YORK - A small plane with New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle aboard crashed into a 50-story condominium tower Wednesday on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, killing two people and raining flaming debris on sidewalks, authorities said. NBC News confirmed Lidle was one of the two dead. A law enforcement official in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Lidle was on the plane. And Federal Aviation Administration records showed the single-engine plane was registered to the athlete. A passport belonging to Lidle, an avid pilot who got his flying license after last year's offseason, was reportedly found on the street below the crash site. The law enforcement official said the plane had issued a distress call before the crash. The official said it was unknown whether Lidle was at the controls. Earlier reports had cited four bodies found; the city’s medical examiner’s office later confirmed only two people had died. The FBI and the Homeland Security Department said there was no evidence it was a terrorist attack. “The initial indication is that there is a terrible accident,†Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said. Nevertheless, fighter jets were sent aloft over U.S. cities as a precaution, the Pentagon said. The twin-engine plane came through a hazy, cloudy sky and hit the 20th floor of The Belaire  a red-brick tower overlooking the East River, about five miles from the World Trade Center  with a loud bang, touching off a raging fire that cast a pillar of black smoke over the city and sent flames shooting from four windows on two adjoining floors. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a news conference Wednesday that the plane left from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey at 2:20 p.m. The airport is 12 miles from midtown Manhattan. Bloomberg said the city’s response to the accident was “massive and quick and coordinated.†Firefighters shot streams of water at the flames from the floors below and put the blaze out in less than an hour. Large crowds gathered in the street in the largely wealthy New York neighborhood, with many people in tears and some trying to reach loved ones by cell phone. “I was worried the building would explode, so I got out of there fast,†said Lori Claymont, who fled an adjoining building in sweatpants. Young May Cha, a 23-year-old Cornell University medical student, said she was walking back from the grocery store down 72nd Street when she saw an object out of the corner of her eye. “I just saw something come across the sky and crash into that building,†she said. Cha said there appeared to be smoke coming from behind the aircraft, and “it looked like it was flying erratically for the short time that I saw it.†“The explosion was very small. I was not threatened for my life,†she added. Richard Drutman, a professional photographer who lives on the 11th floor, said he was talking on the telephone when he felt the building shake. “There was a huge explosion. I looked out my window, and saw what appeared to be pieces of wings, on fire, falling from the sky,†Drutman said. He and his girlfriend quickly evacuated the building. Four-seater plane involved NBC's Jay Blackman reported it was a fixed-wing aircraft operating under visual flight rules, which means the aircraft did not have to be in contact with air traffic controllers. WNBC reported the plane was a Cirrus 20, which can seat four. The Federal Aviation Administration said it was too early to determine what might have caused the crash. The plane left New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport, just across the Hudson River from the city, at 2:30 p.m., about 15 minutes before the crash, according to officials at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport. But they said they did not where the aircraft was headed. FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said the plane was apparently not in contact with air traffic controllers; pilots flying small planes by sight are not required to be in contact. NTSB investigating The National Transportation Safety Board sent a team to investigate. Former NTSB director Jim Hall said in a telephone interview he doesn’t understand how a plane could get so close to a New York City building after Sept. 11. “We’re under a high alert and you would assume that if something like this happened, people would have known about it before it occurred, not after,†Hall said. Mystery writer Carol Higgins Clark, daughter of author Mary Higgins Clark, lives on the 38th floor and was coming home in a cab when she saw the smoke. “Thank goodness I wasn’t at my apartment writing at the time,†she said. She described the building’s residents as a mix of actors, doctors, lawyers and writers, and people with second homes. Sgt. Claudette Hutchinson, a spokeswoman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command in Colorado Springs, Colo., said fighter jets “are airborne over numerous U.S. cities and while every indication is that this is an accident, we see this as a prudent measure at this time.†However, all three New York City-area airports continued to operate normally, FAA spokesman Jim Peters said. In Washington, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said neither President Bush nor Vice President Dick Cheney was moved to secure locations. “All indications are that is an unfortunate accident,†said Yolanda Clark, a spokeswoman for Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration. She said there was “no specific or credible intelligence suggesting an imminent threat to the homeland, at this time.†Memories of Sept. 11 The crash struck fear in a city devastated by the attacks of Sept. 11 five years ago. Sirens echoed across the neighborhood as about 170 firefighters rushed in along with emergency workers and ambulances. Broken glass and debris were strewn around the neighborhood. “There’s a sense of helplessness,†said Sandy Teller, watching from his apartment a block away. “Cots and gurneys, waiting. It’s a mess.†The tower was built in the late 1980s and is situated near Sotheby’s auction house. It has 183 apartments, many of which sell for more than $1 million. Several lower floors are occupied by doctors and administrative offices, as well as guest facilities for family members of patients at the Hospital for Special Surgery, hospital spokeswoman Phyllis Fisher said. No patients were in the high-rise building and operations at the hospital a block away were not affected, Fisher said. [/ QUOTE ] http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15223650/?GT1=8618 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan 3,569 Report Share Posted October 11, 2006 Talk about the Yankees going down in flames... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sources 10 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 Wow, GMan. You seem pretty intent on taking your reputation to the lowest levels on these forums. Completely tasteless. Get some class, moron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WaveFan09 50 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 [ QUOTE ] Talk about the Yankees going down in flames... [/ QUOTE ] I agree, thats pretty heartless, imagine how his family feels, may the Lord be with his family and the Yankee Staff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JJBrickface Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 [ QUOTE ] Talk about the Yankees going down in flames... [/ QUOTE ] I'm not a fan of the Yankees by any means but that was absolutely the most heartless thing you could say. You should be ashamed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueFalcons 10 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 hes a heartless man, i believe hes lost alot of respect from alot of people.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLU 10 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 That was messed up yankdeeez Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigD4VT 11 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 This is a real tragedy. It's sad to see a good person and talented athlete die so young. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan 3,569 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 WOW! Sensitive people!!! Must be Yankee fans. You all need to chill, it was only a joke...tasteless, but a joke none the less. Besides, if God had wanted man to fly, he would have given us wings and feathers and called us birds... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JJBrickface Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 [ QUOTE ] WOW! Sensitive people!!! Must be Yankee fans. You all need to chill, it was only a joke...tasteless, but a joke none the less. Besides, if God had wanted man to fly, he would have given us wings and feathers and called us birds... [/ QUOTE ] No GMan you need to chill pal!!! You don't need to be a Yankees fan to understand how f'ed up you are in the head. I stated above I'm not a Yankees fan. The guy is dead, his family and friends are grieving. So with that reasoning do you not mourn for others who have died in flying accidents? The MArshall football team in the 70's? Everyone on 9/11? You need to stop while you are ahead because you are just showing more ignorance with every post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hacker 82 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 Had to throw in an Alice Cooper reference didn't you. I wish I played golf as well as he does. As for the comment, it was a groaner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan 3,569 Report Share Posted October 12, 2006 [ QUOTE ] I wish I played golf as well as he does. [/ QUOTE ] As well as Alice Cooper??? He's a bogey golfer at best...wouldn't be that good if it weren't for his Callaway golf equipment. Maybe you should aspire to play as well as ME. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dinkman 14 Report Share Posted October 13, 2006 that is sad news Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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