Families gather seeking closure 20 years after ValuJet crash

MIAMI (AP) — Relatives of the 110 people killed when ValuJet Flight 592 caught fire and plunged into Florida's Everglades gathered Wednesday at the remote crash site on the 20th anniversary of their deaths.

Mauro Ociel Valenzuela fled the country before his trial on charges of making false statements and causing the transportation of hazardous material, officials said.

The agency revised its regulations for hazardous materials in cargo and upgraded its standards for fire detection and suppression equipment in cargo compartments of similar aircraft.

Former Miami-Dade Police special response team member Greg Kral of Clermont said meeting the victims' families Wednesday was a "silver lining" for him.

Kral joined about three dozen relatives and emergency responders Wednesday at a roadside memorial along the Tamiami Trail, where 110 concrete pillars point into the Glades.

Not far from the crash site of Flight 592, Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 also plunged into the swamp, back in 1972, with 176 people on board; 77 survived that crash, thanks in large part to a man who was catching frogs that night and rescued passengers in his airboat.

The family found solace in the recovery of her Bible, though it smelled of jet fuel, along with a couple pieces of jewelry, her purse and clothes from her luggage.