Crash site steel eyed for USS Somerset
June 1st, 2008
Crash site steel eyed for ship
BY KECIA BALThe Tribune-Democrat
Published: May 30, 2008 11:48 pm
SOMERSET As a Mississippi company nears construction on the USS Somerset a Navy ship to be constructed in honor of the Flight 93 heroes officials want to incorporate a piece of the crash site.One option is melting 25 tons of steel from a dragline at the crash site to be used in construction of the Somerset, an amphibious transport dock ship.
A similar idea worked for the USS New York, built as a tribute to those who suffered on Sept. 11, 2001. Part of that ship was built using 21 tons of steel from the former World Trade Center towers.
This has been in the works for a while, Somerset County Commissioner John Vatavuk said. A contractor is to be on site Monday to transport the metal to a smelting plant in Newport News, Va., he said.
But a spokesman with Northrop Grumman, which built the New York and is building the USS Somerset and USS Arlington, could not confirm the news.
He said officials have been working to find a way to incorporate each site into the 684-foot-long vessels. Construction on the Somerset has not started.
Flight 93 Ambassador Dave Zwick said the dragline a crane with a bucket attached that is used in coal mining has been a part of the crash site from the beginning and is one of the scenes visitors remember. The machine, about a half-mile north of the crash site, was parked there a couple years before Sept. 11, 2001, and has been idle since.
Zwick helped propose the idea of using steel from the machine to county officials a few months ago.
I thought it would be appropriate, with our mining heritage, he said.
Zwick had read about the attempts to use artifacts from the other crash sites in those vessels.
I thought, if they are making one for Somerset, they ought to have something from Somerset, Zwick added.
In 2004, Navy Secretary Gordon England announced that USS Somerset would be the name of the ninth San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship.
[...] Published: May 30, 2008 11:48 pm SOMERSET ?? As a Mississippi company nears construction ohttp://www.ussnewyork.com/wordpress/?p=31Reunion calendar Detroit Free PressSend reunions at least three weeks in advance to Robin D. Payne [...]
Pingback by uss san antonio — June 25, 2008 @ 11:54 am
On September 11, 2001, United Flight 93 crashed in a field just a few miles from our home in Somerset, PA. I was so deeply affected by the tragedy and wanted to do something to help our nation heal. I designed the “Never Forget†Limited Edition Tribute Flag so Americans would never forget our fellow citizens who became the innocent victims of that tragic day. The “Never Forget†flag is designed to keep alive the memory of the victims and the patriotism we all felt in our hearts. The copyrighted design is a collage of the World Trade Towers surrounded by the Pentagon and the United Flight 93. The four stars represent the four planes used in the attack. Each plane is recognized in the design. As of 2005, 2,992 people were presumed dead as a result of all four September 11 attacks. The exact number may never be known. Because of questions regarding the actual number of victims, I decided to sew 3,000 limited edition flags. Thie sale of the flag series will raise $150,000 for organizations that help wounded soldiers and families of fallen soldiers such as the Fisher House and Freedom Alliance.
I am presently searching for a corporation, organization, or individual who would like to purchase and donate # 21 to the the USS New York, # 24 to the USS Arlington, and # 25 to the USS Somerset.
You can view the flag at http://www.acdcproducts.com.
I will never forget that day! God Bless America!!!
Comment by Cindy Sheaffer — June 27, 2008 @ 1:53 pm