Some Bay Area figure skaters knew victims from the deadly D.C. midair collision. Ian Cull reports.
Sixty-seven people are believed to have died after an American Airlines flight and an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided near Reagan National Airport on Wednesday night.
A search-and-rescue operation involving more than 300 first responders shifted to a recovery operation Thursday morning.
American figure skaters, coaches and family members who had been at a camp at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas, were among those aboard the passenger jet, according to U.S. Figure Skating.
Some Bay Area skaters attended the event and knew some of the victims.
"It's a reminder to cherish your loved ones," said Olympian Polina Edmunds, a San Jose native and two-time silver medalist. "You never know what's going to happen, but it's heartbreaking."
Edmunds competed in the 2014 Sochi games and is deeply involved in the skating community. She was in Wichita last week for the event.
"These are kids that I've interacted with and I've known for multiple years," Edmunds said. "I've worked with them at U.S. Figure Skating camps, so this is just absolutely unbelievable."
Edmunds said two of the victims were coaches and former figure skating world champions from Russia. Their son, an elite skater himself, was not on the plane and is left mourning the loss of both his parents.
The two coaches worked at the Boston skating club where legends of the sport, including Nancy Kerrigan, mourned on Thursday.
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"I feel for the athletes, the skaters, their families, anyone that was on that plane," said Kerrigan, a two-time Olympic medalist. "It is such a tragic event."
San Jose native Anthony Ponomarenko took the silver medal in pairs ice dancing in Wichita. He too interacted with the young skaters at the event.
"They were kids in the sports that were up and coming and that had a future," said Ponomarenko, a four-time U.S. national medalist.
Ponomarenko's name was initially on the list of those presumed dead in the crash.
"I did get a lot of calls this morning, but I flew back on Monday," he said. "So thankfully I was not on that flight, but it's still very tragic."
The skating community is known to be tightknit, which makes the loss that much more personal.
"Everybody is in shock," Edmunds said. "Everyone cannot believe it and it's absolutely devastating."