More Bodies in American Airlines Crash Will Not Be Found Until Plane Is Hoisted Out of River [Video]

The remaining bodies of those who died in the recent Washington, D.C., plane crash will likely not be immediately recovered.

“For us to recover the rest of the remains,” D.C. Fire and EMS Chief John A. Donnelly said during a news briefing on Friday, Jan. 31, “we going to need to get the [plane] out of the water.

Donnelly said the bodies of 41 victims have already been recovered from the water, while 28 of those victims have been positively identified. He added, “As of 6 a.m. this morning, next of kin notifications have been made to 18 families.”

Asked at another point in the press conference if authorities were confident they knew the location of the remaining bodies, Donnelly replied, “we think we know,” and reiterated the need to remove the aircraft from the water.

“We expect to recover all of the bodies. That’s why our teams are still working,” he said, but cautioned that they don’t have a timeline to …