[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 19, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H9222-H9223]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRAGEDY OVER PUGET SOUND

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Washington [Mr. White is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. WHITE. Mr. Speaker, I live on an island in the middle of Puget 
Sound, and a week ago yesterday, on Monday, I took the 6:20 a.m. ferry 
over to Seattle enroute to a meeting. As we left the harbor, a very sad 
thing happened. The captain of the ferry came on and said that we were 
going to have to slow down because he had had reports that a helicopter 
had crashed in Puget Sound and we would have to help in the search.
  The fact is, as we went a little further across the sound, we saw 
some pieces of wreckage. A helicopter had, in fact, crashed and we 
spent several minutes cruising around the area trying to find 
survivors. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, there were no survivors and we 
learned that what this was was an Airlift Northwest medical helicopter 
coming over the island with a team of nurses to help in a medical 
emergency on the island, to take some people back to Seattle.
  Mr. Speaker, a pilot and three medics died in this crash, and I would 
have to say that the captain came on the intercom on the ferry boat and 
said it probably best as we left the scene of the accident after 
looking for the survivors. He said:

       Ladies and gentleman, sorry for the inconvenience, sorry we 
     had to spend a few minutes trying to help out in this search, 
     but you have just seen the final resting place of three true 
     American heroes.

  Mr. Speaker, I would like to add just a few thoughts to what the 
captain of the ferry boat said on that morning. As I said, I live on 
Bainbridge Island and I have heard the helicopter go over my house many 
times bringing medical help to people who needed it on the island and 
could not get to a hospital. There are approximately 14,000 people 
living on this island and there are places like it all over the United 
States. Every day we counted on people at Airlift Northwest to help us 
out, we counted on them and they risked their lives to help us. We owe 
them the deepest debt of congratulations. 

[[Page H9223]]

  Today, Mr. Speaker, I would like to dedicate my remarks and give my 
thanks to Lee Bothwell, the pilot of that helicopter; to Marna 
Fleetwood, a nurse on the helicopter; and to Amy Reeby, another nurse 
on the helicopter. They are true heroes. I offer my condolences to 
their young families. All of them have young children. I hope they rest 
in peace.

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