LaGuardia collision investigation delayed by long TSA wait times

(NewsNation) — More than 20 specialists have been sent to New York City to investigate a deadly tarmac crash at LaGuardia International Airport, though the National Transportation Safety Board says some were delayed because of an ongoing shutdown. At least one specialist meant to investigate the collision between an Air Canada jet and a fire truck was stuck in an airport security checkpoint for more than three hours in Houston, said NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy. "So, it's been a really, a really big challenge to get the entire team here," she said Monday. "And they're still arriving as I speak right up until about, I think the latest I saw was midnight, maybe 1 a.m. tomorrow morning." The Department of Homeland Security has been unfunded since Feb. 14, leaving TSA agents and other airport workers without pay for more than a month and spurring callouts nationwide. Combined with spring break travel and wintry weather, the ongoing shutdown has led to out-the-door security lines and flight interruptions. The Trump administration's answer — deploying immigration agents to airports to assist— has been met with backlash and apprehension from flight attendants and lawmakers. As of Tuesday morning, LaGuardia has reopened at "reduced capacity," and flights are back on, but the runway where the collision occurred is expected to remain closed for some time. Federal investigators on Tuesday are combing through the debris of the runway crash that killed two pilots and injured many more late Sunday night. There were 72 passengers and four crew members on board. More than three dozen passengers were taken to the hospital after the incident, along with two firefighters who were in the fire truck. "Many" of those hospitalized have since been released, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Solange Tremblay, a flight attendant ejected from the plane and thrown more than 300 feet, has survived, her daughter told Canadian media. "They found her and she was still strapped into her seat,” her daughter Sarah Lépine told Quebec’s TVA News. “She had a guardian angel watching over her. It could have been much worse.” In newly released audio footage, an air traffic controller can be heard apparently blaming himself for the deadly collision, roughly 20 minutes after impact. "I tried to reach out to my staff, and we were dealing with an emergency earlier," the controller said. "I messed up." Officials say the fire truck was given permission to check on another plane, which had reported a smell. Moments later, the controller urges the vehicle to “stop, stop, stop" as it approaches the jet on the runway. NTSB said two voice recorders have been recovered and were driven to Washington, D.C., for analysis. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called the collision "troubling" and "incredibly sad." He promised the NTSB will provide judgment on “what should have happened in regard to air traffic control, trucks and airplanes.” NewsNation's Anna Kutz contributed to this report.