Archive: Plane Crashes Into Potomac River

The roar, an eerie silence, then panic—and heroism

Flurries of thick, wet snow swirled through the streets of Washington last Wednesday, clogging traffic and slowing down pedestrians to a labored trudge. As the snow piled up, Government offices and private businesses closed early and sent their workers home. By midafternoon, traffic on the bridges over the Potomac River that link the capital with its Virginia suburbs had already slowed to a crawl. Meanwhile, Washington National Airport had just reopened after having been shut down by the snowfall for two hours. At 3:59 p.m., Air...