Swissair Tragedy

 Who would think community newspaper reporters on the picturesque and tranquil coast of Nova Scotia would be writing about a tragic plane crash leaving 229 people dead?

 Who would think residents of the normally-peaceful South Shore region, would be dealing with such a horrific accident leaving us stunned beyond belief?

 It's hard to believe, yet here we are.

 Everyone knows the details of the doomed Swissair Flight 111 that crashed into the choppy waters of Peggy's Cove around 10:30 last Wednesday night. That happened six days ago, but people are still dazed, still shaking their heads in disbelief. It's a surreal image. Such terrible accidents are not supposed to happen here.

 Nova Scotians hear about such disasters all the time. They happen to other people in other places. They are not supposed to happen in our own backyard. Anyone who stayed awake last Wednesday night watching television coverage was taken on a roller coaster ride of emotions as the full horror of the disaster unfolded. For me, it began shortly before 11 p.m. with a call from Lighthouse reporter Mark Roberts telling me he was on his way to a plane crash in the Blandford area. He had no details, but understood the aircraft was carrying around 100 people. We later learned the number of people on board was much higher.

 After working 20 years in the newspaper business I am seldom surprised by what I hear when I answer the phone. However I was not prepared for Mark's call. My first reaction was to dismiss the report, foolishly thinking such a thing could never happen here. After all, this is Nova Scotia. Then reality sank in. If Mark had been notified, it had to be true, and as the editor of these papers, I had a job to do. After shaking the cobwebs from my head, I called other staff members to work on the story and sent reporter Lisa Brown to the scene with Mark.

 As the two reporters followed emergency personnel along the South Shore to Bayswater Beach and then to Peggy's Cove, I maintained an all-night vigil in front of the television, trying to piece together a picture of the tragedy. According to reports, emergency personnel from all over Nova Scotia, but particularly those along the South Shore, responded in a professional manner, their utmost concern being the people on board the ill-fated jet liner. Besides emergency crews dispatched to the crash scene, individuals responded to the disaster hoping to assist in some small way.

 As the hours passed, and it became obvious that the rescue effort would become a retrieval effort, anxiety turned to sorrow. By dawn officials confirmed that all on board the plane had perished when the aircraft ditched into the cold Atlantic Ocean. As the day wore on, we became distraught to think so many people - even though they were strangers - had lost their lives in our backyard.

 People of the South Shore have endured many tragedies over the years. Each has its own special place in our memories and our hearts. The loss of human life is always hard to accept. This, like so many other tragedies, offered few answers to our many questions.

 In the past, as EMO and other emergency personnel held mock disasters and prepared for such a calamity, we told ourselves such things would never happen here. Sadly, we now know such tragedies can happen here. The serenity of our world has been changed forever by this disaster.

 As we scrambled with this story, I couldn't stop thinking about the people on board that flight. Obviously, they knew their plane was in trouble. What were they thinking? What were they doing during the last few minutes of their lives just before the crash? Were they praying for help and asking why their prayers weren't being answered? It doesn't matter that we didn't know them because people are just people, no matter who they are or where they live. The reality is that 229 people plunged to their death last Wednesday night taking all their hopes and dreams with them. Everything else pales in comparison.