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The total count of lives lost resulting from the transport jet which caught fire and went down has now risen to 13, per latest announcements.

Mayor's Announcement

“On my way to the Union’s candlelight gathering, I learned of a 13th person that passed away as a outcome of the aircraft crash,” expressed the municipal leader in a public communication. “My prayers is with the relatives, friends and peers of all who were taken in this recent tragedy. We will overcome this as one.”

Deceased Identified

A statement from UPS listed the officers operating the aircraft as Captain Richard Wartenberg, Co-pilot Lee Truitt, and International Relief Officer Dana Diamond.

“Our thoughts are extended to all employee who has been impacted and all in our community region – helping you and guaranteeing you obtain the support and resources you need is our priority,” the company’s communication stated.

Investigation Updates

Federal officials disclosed that the freight aircraft’s wing caught fire and an motor separated shortly after liftoff from the Louisville Muhammad Ali international airport, causing the jet to fall and burst into a fireball.

The National Transportation Safety Board announced it is investigating the jet’s upkeep logs, which was in Texas for repairs several weeks before the incident.

Flight tracking data indicated the jet was on the ground in the Texas city from early September to mid-October.

“We are aware that this jet was present in San Antonio,” remarked an NTSB member on later, not giving a exact date range. “We will look at every piece of maintenance that was performed, even the Texas period, straight to the date of the trip.”

Recovery of Key Components

The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were found, and the motor was discovered on the tarmac.

The devices – known as data containers – were designed to survive collision damage and extreme heat from infernos, and they appeared to be undamaged when discovered amid the crash debris. Officials will examining data from the black boxes.

Jet’s concluding data recordings displayed an elevation of 475 feet and a velocity of 210 miles per hour before the accident.

Service History

Per FAA records dated 18 September, a fissure on a component within the center wing fuel tank required fixes.

The company ST Engineering, which said it supplies airframe maintenance for UPS’s aircraft and operates a service location in San Antonio, chose not to provide remarks, but expressed it would work closely when relevant authorities approached it.

Operations Restart

In the meantime, the facility operations continued Wednesday night with its express or night sort operation, spokesperson the company official confirmed. Each of the three landing strips at Louisville Muhammad Ali international airport were also open again.

The UPS package handling facility in this location is the company’s biggest. The facility employs in excess of twenty thousand people in the region, processes three hundred trips per day and sorts more than four hundred thousand items per hour.

Community Response

A memorial was organized on the evening of recently by the local Teamsters Union, which supports workers at the airfield, the firm’s largest freight center.

Worker representatives, which represents UPS workers, began the gathering with a quiet tribute at 5.14pm, the rough hour of the crash previously.

“This incident was so sudden, so unforeseen,” the leader spoke to the crowd of 200. “No one had a moment to say goodbye to any of those who we have lost.”