Thursday marks 25 years since Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashed in the Detroit suburb of Romulus.
The Phoenix-bound jetliner crashed on Aug. 16, 1987, killing 154 people aboard and two on the ground. The lone survivor was Cecelia Cichan, who was 4 at the time.
Play the video as Fox 2's Jason Carr takes a look back at this tragic event. He talks with a former Sergeant of the Wayne County Sheriff's Department, Bruce Schneider, who was among the first to arrive on the scene. Jason also talks to a man who bought a ticket on the flight, but never got on the plane.
The plane was just clearing the runway at 8:46 p.m. when it tilted slightly. The left wing clipped a light pole, and the damaged airliner sheared the top off a rental car building.
The McDonnell Douglas MD80 left a half-mile trail of bodies, charred wreckage, magazines and trays of food along Middle Belt Road when it crashed on Aug. 16, 1987.
The National Transportation Safety Board concluded the plane's crew failed to set the wing flaps properly for takeoff. The agency also said a cockpit warning system did not alert the crew to the problem.
The memorial event is set for Thursday night at the Northwest Flight 255 memorial site on the embankment of Middlebelt Road at the entrance to Interstate 94 in Romulus. The service is to include a reading of the names of the victims.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
Monday, May 13 2013 5:03 PM EDT2013-05-13 21:03:13 GMT
WCSX will be at Roy O'Brien Ford in St. Clair Shores and Malarkey's in Westland collecting donations for the family of fallen firefighter Brian Woehlke until 7:00 p.m. Monday.
WCSX will be at Roy O'Brien Ford in St. Clair Shores and Malarkey's in Westland collecting donations for the family of fallen firefighter Brian Woehlke until 7:00 p.m. Monday.
Tuesday, May 7 2013 5:39 PM EDT2013-05-07 21:39:59 GMT
In a nondescript building in a Warren commercial park, an amazing animal clinic and hospital called All About Animals is doing good work for pets and their owners.
In a nondescript building in a Warren commercial park, an amazing animal clinic and hospital called All About Animals is doing good work for pets and their owners.
Tuesday, May 21 2013 3:11 PM EDT2013-05-21 19:11:34 GMT
Brian Woehlke and his family
All funds collected will be donated to the Westland Fire Fighters Charity's fund for the family of fallen firefighter Brian Woehlke, who passed away while battling a Westland fire on May 8.
All funds collected will be donated to the Westland Fire Fighters Charity's fund for the family of fallen firefighter Brian Woehlke, who passed away while battling a Westland fire on May 8.
Tuesday, May 21 2013 2:12 PM EDT2013-05-21 18:12:17 GMT
An attorney for a former Michigan Supreme Court justice says community service would be an appropriate sentence for a scandal that forced her out of office.
An attorney for a former Michigan Supreme Court justice says community service would be an appropriate sentence for a scandal that forced her out of office.
Tuesday, May 21 2013 12:01 PM EDT2013-05-21 16:01:58 GMT
The American Red Cross is working in a variety of ways and from several different areas of the country to help the victims of the tornadoes which struck in the nation's heartland.
The American Red Cross is working in a variety of ways and from several different areas of the country to help the victims of the tornadoes which struck in the nation's heartland.
Tuesday, May 21 2013 11:48 AM EDT2013-05-21 15:48:16 GMT
Weather Authority Ben Bailey says the humidity has dropped since earlier this morning but the risk of severe weather still exists Tuesday throughout southeast Michigan.
Weather Authority Ben Bailey says the humidity has dropped since earlier this morning but the risk of severe weather still exists Tuesday throughout southeast Michigan.
Tuesday, May 21 2013 11:31 AM EDT2013-05-21 15:31:20 GMT
As people struggle to pick up the pieces in the areas of Oklahoma ravaged by tornadoes, we've learned some relief will be coming from right here in Michigan.
As people struggle to pick up the pieces in the areas of Oklahoma ravaged by tornadoes, we've learned some relief will be coming from right here in Michigan.
