MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) - As crews are preparing to dismantle the downed cargo plane near Miami International Airport and the investigation into the crash continues, two more families have indicated they’ve retained legal representation to explore a wrongful death lawsuit.
According to officials, preliminary work to dismantle the downed aircraft began overnight Wednesday, as crews started cutting up sections of the plane.
7News cameras captured several cranes around the crash site on Thursday.
The National Transportation Safety Board remains on the ground as they investigate the crash that killed five people and injured five others.
Information released by the NTSB Wednesday night provided clearer details into what happened inside the cockpit right before the deadly wreck.
According to the cockpit voice recorder examined by the NTSB, the flight crew checked in with Miami’s air traffic control tower and were cleared to land on runway 30, Sunday afternoon.
Just over two minutes later, prior to landing, a pilot called for flaps to be set to 20 degrees and the other pilot cautioned that they were too fast and made additional comments in regards to the aircraft’s excessive speed throughout the remainder of the recording.
They said there was not a consistent verbal response to the comments about speed.
These issues led to the NTSB interviewing both pilots of the Boeing 767, 55-year-old Joseph Carroll and 37-year-old Jaime Molina.
“There was a big workload going on in the cockpit and not everything was a verbal response, which is why we wanted to talk to both pilots,” said NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy.
In the recording, an electronic “too low terrain” call out was enunciated four times.
A former Federal Aviation Administration official suggested that warning reinforces that the plane was unsteady and may not have been configured correctly for a landing.
Seconds after an apparent touchdown, a pilot called for a go-around, which is an attempt to abort the landing by going back into the air and circling back for another try.
Everything after unfolded in about 15 seconds, when the plane came to a crashing stop after hitting an Econoline van, taking the lives of five people inside.
One of those workers killed was 75-year-old Julio Pineda.
“He was the life of the party, he was affectionately known as ‘El Mago,’ you know, the magician and someone that, when he walks into a room, into a party, someone that, you know, took the air out of the room, you knew he was there, he left an impression on you,” said attorney Joshua Padron.
As of Thursday, Pineda’s sons have secured legal representation from Padron & Lopez-Trigo Law Firm.
The legal team plans to conduct an independent investigation into the crash as they prepare for a potential wrongful death litigation.
“Being able to put him to rest in an appropriate way, that’s justice number one for them,” said attorney Mark Lopez-Trigo. “Justice number two is going to be finding out answers, how did this happen? Why was Mr. Pineda taken away from his family? That’s the second form of justice, third form of justice, and really the main form of justice, is preventing this from happening again.”
Homendy said Thursday’s interview with both pilots is just the start into ascertaining the answers the victims’ families are searching for.
“This was just the beginning round of interviews. We had questions about their background and their training and their first review of how the flight went and how they set up for the final approach. But we need to do final interviews,” said Homendy.
And as of Thursday afternoon, a fourth family has secured legal representation.
Airport officials said that no set date has been determined for when the aircraft will be removed.
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