On this day 43 years ago, on January 13, 1982 (December 19, 1981 lunar calendar), the Potomac River crashed. On the afternoon of January 13, 1982, a Boeing 737 jet of Florida Airlines took off from Washington National Airport, hit the Potomac Bridge in a snowstorm and sank into the Potomac River. At the time of rush hour traffic, the plane hit one truck and more than four cars on the bridge, killing six people instantly. The crash killed a total of 78 people. It was the morning that Washington was shrouded in a blizzard that forced the closure of the international airport. As the blizzard did not weaken until the afternoon, the jet took off shortly after the airport reopened in the afternoon. Many people on the banks of the Potomac River witnessed the plane hit the bridge and sank into the frozen river. Due to the severe traffic congestion, police and ambulances had to drive on the sidewalk outside the White House to reach the scene. The National Park Service helicopter assisted in removing the bodies of the victims from the river and was responsible for lowering the lifeguards into the river; only five survivors were on board. Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Administration said the cause of the accident was unknown, but at least there was no evidence to link it to the mass firing of tower controllers by the government five months ago.