Truth & Rumors > NHL

Sabres heard plane crash, called 911

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10:23 AM ET 02.14 | Teppo Numminen had gone to bed on Thursday night when the sound of an airplane caught his ear. "I heard the plane coming," the Buffalo Sabres defenseman told the Buffalo News following the Sabres' morning skate prior to their game last night against the San Jose Sharks. "I thought it sounded really weird, really close to us. Then I heard a little poof afterward and I was thinking: 'That doesn't sound good, doesn't sound right.' So I looked out my window and I saw the red sky and I knew something was wrong." Numminen and several other Sabres live in or near Clarence Center, a suburb of Buffalo that was hit by tragedy on Thursday evening when Continental Flight 3407 plummeted out of the sky and crashed into a house, killing all 49 people on the plane and one man on the ground. Sabres defenseman Jaroslav Spacek noted the bad weather when he was driving home for dinner earlier in the night, and when he heard sirens at around 10:30, figured a car accident had occurred. He looked out the window and realized he was not right. "I saw the flames," Spacek said. "It was scary. I turned the news on and I saw the plane crash and I was like, 'Wow.' Because some of the Sabres lived close to crash site, worried relatives began sending text messages. Spacek and Toni Lydman received messages from the Czech Republic and Finland respectively and assured relatives they were okay. Area schools were closed, so some of the Sabres with children had to explain to them why. Backup goalie Patrick Lalime was among those who called 911.

Toronto Sun

Buffalo Sabres, AP Buffalo Sabres, AP

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