Family, friends remember Flight 800 victims

They drove over from Nassau County and distant parts of New Jersey. They flew half a day from Oregon or 21 hours from Australia. All came to the place where their lives changed forever 15 years ago.

Hundreds of family members and friends of the victims of the TWA Flight 800 crash gathered last night on the anniversary of the crash to commemorate the deaths of their loved ones and celebrate their lives.

The ceremony began at the flight's granite memorial at Smith Point County Park in Shirley. The jumbo jet, bound from New York to Rome with a stopover in Paris, exploded on July 17, 1996 in the sky off East Moriches just 12 minutes after takeoff from Kennedy Airport. All 230 people on board the plane were killed.

Investigators determined that a fuel-tank explosion, likely caused by a wiring problem in the center tank, caused the explosion. Marlene Johsen, 75, of Oregon, has come to the anniversary ceremony five times in memory of her twin sister, Arlene, a flight attendant who was aboard the flight.

"It's still sad," she said. "I miss her every day."

Mike Tepedino, of Port Jefferson Station, remembers the night vividly. Much of the debris from the plane's explosion fell into waters where Tepedino fished. When Tepedino heard the news, he and a friend rushed to the fishing spot and spent the night picking up debris, and a woman's body, from the water.

"The water was all lit up on fire," Tepedino, a plumber, said. "We followed that right into it. It was a horrible night."

Michelle Hidalgo was 8 when her dad, Jim Hull, a TWA flight attendant, was killed in the explosion. "The first time I came here I was 9," she said. "There was a lot of confusion. I was still in denial. I didn't understand what happened."

Charlie McEneaney, 59, of Freeport, worked at the TWA ticket counter the night of the crash. He helped board and book passengers onto the plane and still remembers making small talk about seat positions with customers. "I have mixed emotions," said McEneaney of his role.

After the names were read, the caretakers of the memorial handed out 230 white roses to the families and friends of the dead. Only a few bathers were left on the beach when the mourners walked down to the water to toss their roses at the surf's edge. Soon it was done.

Some hugged, some cried, and the water began to carry the roses away.

Organizers are raising funds for an endowment that would go toward paying for the upkeep of the memorial. Donations can be sent to: P.O. Box 1061 Clifton Park, NY 12065.