Search and rescue operation is becoming more grim, with no survivors recovered so far, source says

No survivors have been pulled from the water. They’re pulling bodies. Holy crap. pic.twitter.com/X5UpHSGzzT

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) January 30, 2025

VIA CNN:

The search and rescue operation for survivors of Wednesday’s plane collision is becoming more grim, according to a law enforcement source.

The source described images from rescuers as “stunning,” saying it was hard to make out what they were seeing. The plane, they said, was in several pieces.

Two law enforcement sources and a source familiar with the situation confirm that no survivors had been recovered at this point.

Officials are preparing for this to be the deadliest disaster in DC in decades since an Air Florida Flight crashed into the 14th Street Bridge, connecting Arlington, Virginia, and Washington, DC, in 1982, according to the source.

Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser will be part of the 12:30 a.m. presser, her team says.

VIA DAILY MAIL:

Hopes are beginning to fade for 64 people on board the doomed American Airlines flight which crashed into the Potomac River on Wednesday night.

Emergency crews and divers from across the nation rushed to Washington DC and are desperately trying to search the frigid waters for survivors.

Authorities say the water is so cold that a body would begin developing hypothermia within 20 minutes. The plane went down in the water more than three hours ago. 

American Airlines has confirmed 60 passengers and four crew were on board the plane when it collided with a military helicopter.

Emergency services and fireboats are scouring the river.

Hopes fade for survivors amid icy water temperatures so cold a person only has ’15-20 minutes’ before they begin to suffer hypothermia

Hopes are beginning to fade for survivors as rescue crews scour the Potomac River, where the water temperature is just 37 degrees Fahrenheit.

NBC Chief Meteorologist Doug Kammerer said that at the time of the incident the water temperature in the river was around 37 degrees Fahrenheit.

Earlier on Wednesday it dropped as low as 36 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Kammerer said that at that temperature someone in the water has only 15 to 20 minutes before they start suffering from hypothermia.

The National Weather Service reported that wind gusts of up to 25 mph were possible in the area throughout the evening.