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CNN Live At Daybreak

Plane Struck Building After Most Workers Had Left

Aired April 19, 2002 - 06:24   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
Another question this morning, what caused an airplane to slam into Milan's tallest building? That's what everyone in Italy wants to know this morning. The crash killed three people, injured dozens more, and raised fears of a September 11-type terrorist attack.

Our Chris Burns joins us live from Milan with the latest on the investigation -- good morning.

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Well among those injured, the 36 injured, 11 remain in the hospital. At least one person with severe burns. So people still recovering, and the world recovering from this scare that was thought to be yet another September 11.

The investigation goes on, the cleanup goes on in the tallest building in Milan, the symbol of Italy's financial center that was hit straight on by a small twin-engine plane just last night. It could have been worse. There were some 1,300 people working in that building. As the day was wrapping up, many of them leaving, but it could have been much, much worse.

Also, in the top part of the building, the last five floors on the top had been undergoing renovations. So very few, if any, people up there at the time.

The mayor and the governor of the area have paid a visit to the disastrous site. They toured along with investigators and cleanup crews who were picking through, trying to find clues as to exactly why and what happened.

Now what we hear from the -- authorities say the control tower had been talking to the pilot. The pilot was a Swiss Italian, Luigi Gino Fasulo. Sixty eight years old, with about 30 years of flight experience. A very experienced pilot who said he had landing gear problems.

The control tower told him to head west to try to figure out that problem. Instead, he headed north and did not speak to the control tower after that. Very mysterious.

So far, there is speculation among investigators and even Fasulo's son that it could have been -- now could have been a suicide. He had a lot of heavy debts. He was an art dealer deeply in debt. So there is speculation that perhaps that might have been behind it, and that crashing the plane straight on into the building could have been a statement. Maybe a tearing a page out of the September 11 attack, who knows? But that is what investigators are looking at.

They're also questioning people who knew and know Fasulo in the Locarno area -- Locarno, Switzerland, a picturesque lakeside area where he came from, where he lived, where he flew his plane over here. A 20-minute flight, and ending it straight into the symbol of Italy's financial center -- Carol.

COSTELLO: That is just so strange. Thank you. Chris Burns reporting live for us from Milan.

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