There will be hearts that quietly break when no one is looking. It gets better, you get stronger, but no, for now, nothing anyone says will even connect,'' said Doug Alpern of suburban Pittsburgh, whose wife, Shelley, died with 131 others aboard USAir Flight 427 on Sept. 8, 1994. The cause of the crash 7 miles from Pittsburgh International Airport remains unknown. Closure can be getting a loved one's remains for a proper burial. Some victims of the crash of Flight 427 never got that, and their survivors turned for closure to answers that never came about the crash's cause.
Uncertainty keeps doors too open.
Families reaching out to other crash victims is increasingly common, prompted in large part by the crashes of Flight 427 and American Eagle Flight 4284 in Roselawn, Ind., a month later. Doug Smith of Burlington, Vt., whose daughter, Alison, and 67 others died that Halloween night in 1994, is now president of the National Air Disaster Alliance, a national support group. But that's changed. And Cincinnati should know Comair is to be complimented for its response.'' Other disasters have spawned more support groups. Another who lost a loved one at Roselawn, Ind., was Jennifer Stansberry, whose brother, Brad, was a recent college graduate then.