UNlVi;RSITY._Of_!:iAWAII Llt,RAR'( arianas %riety;:~~s Micronesia's Leading Newspaper Since 1972 ~ • " . Vol. 25· No.',1°0o· .· \ ·.. · ; .·· ' . T. h. · d. ·A· · · I : · ... · Saipari', MP.969.50 ·. .:·,-\,::ilw.,,-,i~~ .·. ©1997 ·Marianas Variety . ·: . · .. · . .. ~rs ay • UgUS 7 , ·199 . 7 Serving CN.MI for 25 Y.ears· · ·ii. :{:;;l I 1• s' • • • '• ' ' •"' ............. ,/ AGANA, Guam (AP)-A Ko­ just before the crash," said Rudy smell of burned fuel and flesh was rean Air jet carrying 254 people Delos-Santos, reporter at radio unbearable, he said. The survi­ crashed and burned in a rain­ station KOKU who lives near the vors came from the front of the storm early Wednesday, and crash· site on Nimitz Hill, three plane, which was largely intact. rescuers who trudged through miles (five kilometers) from the The back was in ruins. the jungle with flashlights found airport on this U.S. island posses­ A White House official, speak­ at least 35 survivors. U.S. Navy sion. "The plane plowed through ing on condition of anonymity, crews were trying to crack open the jungle for a minute or so be­ · said authorities have concluded the fuselage to see if anyone fore it came to a rest." there was no fire and no distress (!]se could be saved. He said he ran to the area call from the pilot prior to the Flight 801, aBoeing747from through the darkness and got crash, as was previously believed. Seoul, South Korea, was carry­ within about 80 or90 yards (73 to The official said earlier accounts ing mostly Korean tourists, in­ 82 meters) before law enforce­ contained information that proved cluding several couples on their ment officials stopped him. unreliable. honeymoon, when it went down "The fire was still going, and I As the plane crashed, it snagged in the lush green hills as it was could see the silhouettes of bod­ a pipeline, causing the line to rup­ coming in for a landing in the ies in and around the pla,ne," ture and spill-about l ,OOb gallons middle of the night. At least one Delos-Santos said. "It was like a (3,800 liters) of aviation fuel. But Japanese and 13 Americans giant bonfire." U.S. Navy Lt. Commander Jeff were on board. Rescue workers had to take A young survivor is rescued from the wreckage of Korean Airlines ,. Alderson emphasized the fuel did flight 801 by U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force and Guam civilian rescuers : ..,.There.was a big ball of fire breaks· to get fresh air because the Continued on page 20 early Wednesday. AP/US Navy/Michael A. Mayers 1,- Rugged jungle hampers 1 Guam crash rescue bid · ' . with tropical vegetation that it ·· took rescuers four hours to get I: survivors to a hospital only a \ mile away. '.; The rain-soaked sawgrass '.1· covering rocks made it so slip- \ pery it was impossible to pick ; up and carry anyone more than :·j a few hazardous steps, said I1 Gov. Carl Guiterrez, one of the : ! first on the scene. The plane with 254 people on board went down in an early morning downpour, skidding : Carl T. Gutierrez i through the jungle in a ball of /I/ AGANA, Guam (AP) - The fire before coming to rest in a / teJTain where a Korean Air jumbo d~ep ravine carved by the Sasa Lj The tail section of Korean Airlines flight 801 lies on Nimitz Hill early Wednesday after the flight from Seoul jet crashed and burned Wednes­ River. I:, crashed in a rainstorm with 254 people aboard. There were 35 reported survivors in the crash. AP day is so rugged and chocked Continued on page 20 / I I' ·. ,:r.11,~M/t;.W~~f-b\; ... ;,~~Lr:· · ... _k.ki..-=-! IF U.S. insists on takeover Legislators now serious Better to have 'independence' about worker stay limit By Zaldy Dandan or 'free-association'-- Tenorio Variety News Staff By Zaldy Dandan hearing on President Clinton's CONSIDERED "dead" only a few Variety News Staff proposed federal takeover of months ago, the bill that would SA YING that he had had enough local immigration and wage limit the stay of alien workers has of the Clinton administration's policies, and through the re­ been resurrected, and is now be­ "unfair" criticism of the CNMI's sumption of the Covenant Sec­ ing seriously considered by the immigration and wage policies, tion 902 talks. Legislature. Gov. Froilan C. Tenorio yester­ He said Guam is also asking Speaker Diego T. Benavente day announced that he will ask for a change in its relationship (R-Saipan), who was opposed to the federal government to grant with the U.S., "(so) maybe it's the bill, yesterday said most leg­ independence or a "freely associ­ time (Guam and the Northern islators feel that "now is the time" ated state" status to the Northern Marianas) get together and form to restrict the stay of the CNMI 's Marianas. our own country, the Republic estimated 30,000 alien workers, Tenorio, in a media conference, of the Marianas." in light of President Clinton's pro­ said he will make the "request" Embarrassed posal to impose federal immigra­ when he testifies· in September Tenorio said the federal gov­ tion and minimum wage laws in before the U.S. congressional Continued on page 20 the Commonwealth. Froilan C. Tenorio Continued on page 20 PAC NEWSPAPER STACKS t.. :, 2-l\1:\RIANAS VARIETY NE\VS AND VIEWS-THURSDAY- AUGUST 7. 1997 ; THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 1997 -MARIANAS VARIETY NEWS AND VIEWS-3 ----- ---'-------------------------------------------"\.:, • 1 Shock, ef, despair\ I offers Gumn help By SANG-HUN CHOE the passengers. Tenorio sends CHC sends SEOUL,South Korea (AP)-Some "It's like the sky falling down," cried and others broke down in de­ Sohn Sun-hwasaid, wiping tears from symp~t~i~s to medicines spair Wednesday as ci1ey anxiously her cheeks. She said her younger' awaited news on ilie fate of relatives sister, Sohn Sun-nyo, 24, a company · crash victims and supplies on bom-d a Koremi Air jumbo jet official, had left on a sightseeing trip i.;}' THE CNMI yesterday extended which crashed in Guam. to the island. t1 ' sympathy and offered assistance By Ferdie de la Torre 111e Boeing 747 carrying 254 Kim Young-rae, 40, a house wife,~ ( to Guam, as well as, to relatives Variety News Staff . people, mostly South Koremi tour­ could not sto~ weep!ng ?11d clutched illi of victims of yesterday's plane THE COMMONWEALTII Health ists, went down in flames shortly a passenger hst which includes her J/i crash that killed over 200 and Centersentyesterdayemergencymedi­ before it was to land in the U.S.­ younger sister, her husband and two I',/ cal supplies to Guam Memorial Hos­ 1 injured scores of passengers. children, aged 8 and 5. 1 pital where some of the victims of owned South Pacific island.111e pas­ "We feel bad about it," Gov. sengers include at ]e:L~t one Japanese yesterday's plane cra5h were taken "M. ~y people died and it's dread- 11 Froilan C. Tenorio said. into. rn1d 13 Americans. ful toci1mkthattheyareamongthem," · ,~ '/ "On behalf of the people of the Department of Public Health Ser­ All Souili Korean television net­ she said. l Commonwealth, I send our sym­ vices Secretary Dr.IsamuJ. Abraham She said her sister's husband, an works intenupted their regular pro­ t~ pathies to the people of Korea, as in an interview said cile "mercy mis­ official at tl1e Seoul office of Japan's ~/, gramming to repo1t ilie news non- . you know we have a big commu­ siondonation"wastransported through Nomura Secmities Co., won two [ ilie Governor's Office and CNMI's stop. ! nity of Koreans here," he added. At Seoul's Kimpo International round-tiip tickets to Guam as a raffle /( liaison officer in Guam. Tenorio said the CNMI has sent p1ize at a Ch1istmas prn"ty last year. "My concern is mainly on tl1e unof­ Airport, about two dozen relatives t\ medical supplies upon request of gailiered to get the latest info1mation. A wommi in her 50s broke down ( ficial report iliat 12 US citizens were the rescue team of Guam. among iliose on board in cilat plane. I Many protested angrily when ci1ey after scrernning repeatedly, "Search , ''They have asked for other don't know ifiliose were from ilie US felt they were being denied infom1a­ and b1ing my son." She said her son, Relatives of victims check lists of survivors after arriving at the Korean Airline office in Seoul Wednesday. J items but some of them [are not] Mainland,Guam orCNMI," Abraham . South Korean Air flight 801 from Seoul carrying 254 people crashed in Guam earlier in the day. AP tion about tl,e crash and ilie status of Yoo Sung-jae, 24, an engineer in I ~,' available here," Tenorio said. said. (see related story on page I) Guam, had been on the plane. He said the CNMI also offers N_avy, Air Force, Coast Guard and c_ivilian rescuers remove a survivor from the wreckage of Korean Airlines The secretary said the la5t report he had received from Barbara Vanmeter, Some relatives expresses relief :_•_)' manpower assistance to Guam flight 801, after the 747 crashed with 254 persons onboard. AP Photo!U.S. Navy, Michael Myers after learning tl1eir loved ones had the government's Iiaison officer from "(But) I don't see that happen­ 1· ' su1vived. i'.I Guam, had it iliat 13 persons were ing because there's a lot of mili­ · Th an k God ," Kim In-yong, a 58 - !!/il taken to GMH while 22 oiliers at ilie tary personnel in Guam who have I NMI Red Cross team on standby I Navy Hospital.