A local news reporter has been criticized for asking a man for his wife's last texts as he desperately waited to see if she survived the fatal Washington D.C. plane crash.
The Context
American Airlines Flight 5342 plane collided with a Black Hawk helicopter in Washington D.C. on Wednesday evening.
The plane, with 60 passengers and 4 crew on board, crashed with the army helicopter mid-air while approaching for landing at Reagan National Airport.
The helicopter had a crew of three on board and was on a training flight. Fatalities have been confirmed, and no survivors have been located as search and rescue operations persist.
Video footage shows the horrifying moment the American Airlines flight collided with the helicopter.
What To Know
A clip has also surfaced revealing a heartbroken husband hoping for his wife to be saved from the AAFlight 5342 wreckage—and being asked by a WUSA9 reporter to show his wife's potentially final texts.
The husband, Hamaad Raza, says: "I'm just praying that somebody is pulling her out of the river right now as we speak."
The WUSA9 reporter then asks: "When was the last time you spoke?".
Raza responds: "She text me that they were landing in 20 minutes."
In a moment that has drawn much criticism online, the reporter then says: "Can you show us the text message?"
Raza reads out the distressing text which reads: "Landing in 20 minutes." He then reveals that the rest of his text "didn't get delivered," which is when he realized "something might be up."
WUSA9 is a Washington D.C. news station, affiliated with CBS.
What People Are Saying
The conversation has angered many online, with X users highlighting the sensitivity of the "vulnerable moment."
One user posted: "This guy's wife probably just died in the DC plane crash and what does the evil mainstream media reporter ask him?
""Can you show us the texts she sent you"."
Another X user said: "The fact that a@wusa9 reporter not only went up to the husband of a passenger on the plane that crashed at DCA tonight but then proceeded to ask the husband to show the texts he sent trying to contact his wife is DISGUSTING."
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Donald Trump has reacted to the plane crash on Truth Social. In a post on Wednesday evening he wrote: "The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn't the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn't the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane. This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD."
It has also been confirmed that some members of the U.S. Figure Skating team were on board the fatal flight. A statement reads: "These athletes, coaches, and family members were returning home from the National Development Camp held in conjunction with the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas. We are devastated by this unspeakable tragedy and hold the victims' families closely in our hearts."
What Happens Next
Rescuers are continuing to look for survivors. The District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Chief John Donnelly told reporters early on Thursday morning that the recovery is "a highly complex operation, the conditions out there are extremely rough for the responders. It's cold. They're dealing with relatively windy conditions."
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About the writer
Tahar Rajab is a Newsweek News and Features Journalist based in London, UK. His focus is audience engagement, traffic growth ... Read more