Speaker Heastie Statement on 20 Year Anniversary of AA587 Crash in Belle Harbor

Two months after the devastating September 11th terrorist attacks, another tragedy took the lives of 260 people on board American Airlines Flight 587 bound for the Dominican Republic, including five people on the ground in Belle Harbor, Queens.

For New Yorkers and all Americans, the crash reopened the wounds and reignited the fear that another terrorist attack was underway. For New York City’s Dominican community whose compatriots made up 90 percent of the passengers on board, the crash devastated the families and friends of those who lost loved ones.

Two decades later, those families continue to mourn the loss of their loved ones and honor their memory. Today, we join them in memorializing their loved ones. May God bless them and grant them peace during this time of remembrance.”