A chaotic mix of grief, fear and relief filled a waiting room in Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Monday night, as families embraced loved ones they thought might have been lost and others were whisked away to learn that tragedy had struck. Those with relatives aboard Alaska Airlines Flight 261 were quickly shuttled into a private room, where Red Cross volunteers and a chaplain provided information and what comfort they could. The door was guarded by police and watched over by a bank of television cameras. Michael Eagan Jr. of the Seattle-King County chapter of the American Red Cross said nine volunteers, including mental health professionals and registered nurses were comforting family members. It really is.
Federal law requires airlines to provide counseling services and other support.
Jack Walsh, spokesman for the airline, said they were in the process of contacting relatives of those who were killed on the flight from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Passengers on an earlier flight from the Mexican resort town were shocked to hear the news, which they learned only as they left the plane. One family had waited on standby, just missing the flight that crashed. We're just so happy to be together and alive. It's pretty disturbing.