Continental Flight 3407

Thursday night before going to bed I thought about how Alex was going to be 7 mos old the next day and how much I was looking forward to having a 4 day weekend with him. I also thought that I had to remember to take some pictures for his 7 month old bday. Like I would forget!

But when we got up yesterday morning I saw that I had about 10 messages on my work phone, starting at about 1am. This is how I found out about Continental Flight 3047's crash into a neighborhood in Clarence Center, NY. Tears immediately formed in my eyes as I thought of the lives lost and devastation. Then I immediately went into action knowing that I had to respond. I had to get someone to watch AJ for the day. I had to pack a bag "just-in-case". But then I stoppped when i realized that this was a Continental flight. Our good friend Sean, AJ's God-Father is a pilot for Continental. What if he was flying that plane? All of a sudden this tragedy became not just a public tragedy but a possible personal one, as well. I immediately told Jay he HAD to get ahold of Sean. Thankfully, he was not flying that plane. But still, the closeness of the situation is so scarey.

My mom and dad were happy to help out with Alex for the day. Thank God for that. I finally made it out to Buffalo around 11am. The day was sorta surreal. Every law enforcement agency you could think of was there, assisting in the response. Every one of these responders 110% committed to doing their part to help. And I was fortunate to be one of them. For me, it was a long day, and a learning experience, and an opportunity to provide support to other responders and the victim families. At several points during the day I fought back my own tears, watching others grieve. Still in the midst of this tragedy, there were several miracles that took place, too. Thank God for those.

On my drive home all I could think about was how much I wanted to be home and hug Jay and Alex. I have always been well aware of the uncertainty of life and how it can so quickly be taken away from you. But now, being a mom, I am too aware of how much I could lose. And it is scarey.

My thoughts and prayers continue to be with the victims and their family and friends, as well as the responders still working so hard at finding answers and clearing the wreckage. They have a lot of work ahead of them.