Jennifer Riordan had just boarded a Southwest Airlines flight at New York’s LaGuardia Airport. The 43-year-old bank executive had been in the city on business and was returning home to her husband, Michael, and two children.
Dallas – where the plane was bound – wouldn’t have been her final destination. She still had to make it Albuquerque, New Mexico, and she was expecting a long day ahead of her as the plane took off about 10.30am on Tuesday.
However, just 20 minutes into the flight something completely unexpected and ultimately tragic happened – the plane’s engine exploded. The explosion sent shrapnel flying through the air, smashing through the window by the seat Jennifer was sitting in, and hitting her.
In one terrifying moment, the pressure sucked the Wells Fargo employee headfirst out of the window. Witnesses said she hit her head on the way.
Top Comments
Seems every time there is a tragedy, there's someone who starts a GoFundMe page. I think some people can't tell the difference between starting a tributes/memorial page, and a fundraiser.
Yes!! I said to a friend the other day, “How on earth did anyone pay for a funeral before GoFundMe?”
Often it's not even to raise funds for a funeral. The GoFundMe for this particular tragedy seems to have been established with good intentions, but actually no real goal of funding, well, anything. Online commenters criticised this, and drew a lot of hurt responses from the person who established the page, who seems to have conceded that the money was not being solicited for any particular goal or reason, apart from the fact that this lady has died.
I’ve contributed to money for a funeral for family and friends. GoFundMe is just the way to do it now as you have this big pool of people to reach.