Photo Provided Washington, D.C., Fire Chief John A. Donnelly Sr. addresses first responders from across Ohio during a visit to Columbus on Friday.

COLUMBUS — The Ohio Department of Commerce Division of State Fire Marshal hosted Washington, D.C., Fire Chief John A. Donnelly Sr. on Friday for a special educational event highlighting lessons learned from last January’s air traffic accident involving an airliner and a military helicopter over the Potomac River in the nation’s capital.

On Jan. 29, an American Airlines regional jet attempting to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport collided midair with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter, sending both aircraft into the Potomac River. The tragic accident claimed the lives of 67 people; there were no survivors.

Donnelly, who played a key role in leading emergency response efforts to this uniquely complex situation, shared his firsthand experience with dozens of first responders from across Ohio during two educational sessions at the division’s campus in Reynoldsburg. His presentations highlighted critical insights into managing such a challenging response effort as well as lessons learned from the event that can be applied to future emergency response efforts.

“I hope everyone can take something away from this experience that they can take back to help their communities,” said Donnelly, who has more than 30 years of leadership experience, including overseeing special operations and leading the 2,100-member Washington, D.C., Fire and EMS Department. “I would definitely have benefited from hearing about other people’s experiences over the years.”

“This was truly a sobering yet critical educational opportunity for our state’s first responders,” said State Fire Marshal Kevin Reardon. “Lessons can and should be learned from every tragedy, and Chief Donnelly’s firsthand experience responding to this significant accident in Washington, D.C., is invaluable for first responders here in Ohio. While we sincerely hope our men and women in Ohio’s fire service never have to respond to an incident of this scale, the information they learned here today very well could help save lives in the future.”

The event was livestreamed on the Ohio Channel, as well as on the State Fire Marshal’s Facebook page.