San Francisco plane crash: 3rd passenger dies

SAN FRANCISCO

The passenger, identified as a girl, had been in critical condition since arriving at the hospital following the crash. Her name and age were withheld at the request of her parents.

Earlier in the day, San Francisco police confirmed that one of the girls who died in the plane crash was struck by an emergency vehicle. The coroner's office has not determined the cause of her death yet.

Police spokesman Officer Gordon Shyy said the whole area of the runway was covered with foam at the time she was struck.

The news comes only a few hours after thick smoke could be seen at the site of the plane crash wreckage overnight.

Runway 28L reopened on Friday for the first time since the crash. The Asiana plane wreckage is sitting in a holding area and will soon be turned into scrap metal.

It remains unclear what caused the smoke but officials have confirmed the smoke was not caused by a fire. Heat and friction generated by crews as they cut the fuselage of Asiana Flight 214 may be to blame for the smoke.

San Francisco International Airport spokesman Doug Yakel says the fuselage was cut into two pieces to make it easier to transport. He says fire trucks at the scene doused the smoke before it turned into a fire.

That section of runway sustained major damage when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash landed Saturday, killing two teenagers and injuring more than 100 people.

Officials have not released preliminary findings but the National Transportation Safety Board says the Boeing 777 came in too low and too slow when it tried to land Saturday.

Newly released records show two pilots called for an aborted landing and there was no discussion of speed until nine seconds before impact.

Passengers aboard the flight also called 911 and begged for help following the tragedy. San Francisco officials say first responders were delayed because of concerns the plane could explode.

A vigil was held in West Hills Thursday for the two 16-year-old girls that were killed in the crash. Wang Linjia and Ye Mengyuan were remembered at West Valley Christian Church. Both were planning to attend summer school at the church. The memorial was translated into Chinese and streamed live to China for the victims' friends and loved ones.

A video montage showed photos of the young girls, flashing peace signs and grinning at the camera. In one photo, the close friends had formed their arms into the shape of a heart.

Meantime, a San Francisco-based television station incorrectly reported the names of the pilots in the Asiana Airlines crash after the NTSB says an intern erroneously confirmed them.

The racially-offensive names aired on KTVU-TV on Friday. KTVU co-anchor Tori Campbell read the names aloud as a graphic with the phony names appeared on-screen. The clip of the report has gone viral.

The NTSB issued a statement Friday. It read, in part:

"...A summer intern acted outside the scope of his authority when he erroneously confirmed the names of the flight crew on the aircraft...Appropriate actions will be taken to ensure that such a serious error is not repeated."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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