I was riding Air Florida Flight 90 because I was going to visit family. I wasn’t able to fly up for the holidays because of work so I decided to fly up now. I was really excited because I haven’t been to Florida in about 9 months. It’s my favorite place to be. I had no idea it was going to end the way it did.

When I got to the airport I was sure it was going to be delayed. The snow was coming down really hard. We boarded the plane and I was sitting next to a man, dressed in business attire. We made small talk about how bad the snow storm was. You couldn’t even see out the window, it made me wonder, can the pilot see out the window? I quickly pushed that thought out of my mind because I didn’t want to worry; I wanted a nice calm flight. I started thinking about the first thing I was going to do in Florida. Still, something didn’t feel right. I didn’t feel safe.

After being in line for takeoff four hours and we were scheduled to and I was excited to finally leave. We started taking off and it didn’t feel right. I couldn’t see anything. It made me uneasy. I heard someone whisper “It seems like we are going slowly doesn’t it?” to the person that sat next to them, that person shrugged and continued reading their book. We took off and we were flying low. The man that thought we were going slow seemed very uneasy, which made me feel uneasy too. By now everyone was panicking, and by the time I took a deep breathe to calm myself; we crashed through the bridge and into the Potomac River.

Everyone was either moaning of pain or screaming. I was terrified, water was rushing in fast. I thought of my mother. At home, probably relaxing, and waiting for my call to pick me up at the airport. My carry-ons were soaking wet. People were trying to get out of the plane. The front of the plane was completely under water. I was sitting the middle, closer to the front than from the back. The water was up to my waste. All I could think about my family. Those thoughts would be interrupted by how cold the water was, and the screaming of people. I was hearing the rescue plane, wondering how many people would be saved.

I wanted to run, I wanted to scream, and I wanted to cry. I couldn’t do any of those things. The water was so cold I couldn’t even move. The water was quickly rising and up to my chest. I tried one last time to move and save myself. I couldn’t. I was so frustrated, I felt stuck.

I was horrified by the bodies surrounding e under water. I tried my best to stay above, but it was no use now. The water was up to my neck. I couldn’t breathe. The water was so cold. I took my last breath; it wasn’t a very good one. I was under the water. I couldn’t see. I gave up. I wasn’t getting out. I prayed, and then everything went dark.