Wednesday, August 27, 2003 The Halifax Herald Limited

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Families to observe fifth Swissair anniversary
May be last formal event marking crash
By Michael Lightstone / Staff Reporter

The fifth - and perhaps last - annual formal function honouring the
229 people killed in the Swissair disaster off Nova Scotia is set
for next week.

Organizer John O'Donnell said Tuesday some of the victims' relatives
are already in metro to mark the tragedy. Most are due to arrive
during the Labour Day weekend.

Swissair Flight 111 crashed into St. Margarets Bay on the night of
Sept. 2, 1998, after a fire onboard. The plane was en route to
Geneva from New York, and all passengers and crew died.

"My sense is this year is probably the last of the so-called formal
observances," said Mr. O'Donnell, a military reserves chaplain in
Halifax and member of an interfaith group handling the Swissair
anniversary. The interfaith group won't be involved next year, he
said.

Mr. O'Donnell said that for many relatives, the five-year milestone,
which follows a final accident report in March by Canada's
Transportation Safety Board, seems like a logical time to end the
planned ritual.

But he said family and others close to those who perished "will
always" come here to remember their loved ones.

Several families from other parts of North America and from Europe
are intending to attend the fifth anniversary events. Mr. O'Donnell
said others taking part will be Nova Scotians who helped with the
recovery operation and crash investigation.

On Tuesday, a public gathering and prayer service is scheduled for
11 a.m. at the Bayswater memorial. A reception will follow at the
Blandford community centre.

Mr. O'Donnell said that at 4 p.m., about 25 family members will
travel by boat to the crash site, 11 kilometres from Peggys Cove.

A brief prayer service will be held on the water.

According to Ottawa's crash report, wiring feeding the jet's
entertainment system likely contributed to the fire, which filled
the Boeing MD-11's cockpit with smoke.

The $57-million probe, which produced 23 recommendations, concluded
the pilots acted appropriately after smelling smoke 53 minutes into
the doomed flight.

http://www.herald.ns.ca/stories/2003/08/27/fNovaScotia125.raw.html
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