Wednesday night’s fatal crash at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport involving a commercial airplane and a Black Hawk military helicopter has drawn renewed attention to air traffic controllers and what role they may have played in the accident that is believed to have killed 67 people.

Minnesota native Wendy Jo Shaffer is among those who died when a passenger jet and a Black Hawk helicopter collided in midair Wednesday night near Reagan National Airport, family friends tell WCCO.

“She was a radiant soul, a devoted wife to Nathan, and an incredible mother to her two beautiful boys ages 3 and 1,” friends wrote in the GoFundMe post. “Her love, kindness, and unwavering spirit touched everyone who knew her, and her absence leaves a void that can never be filled.”

Wendy Jo Shaffer was identified by her family as one of the victims of the crash. She grew up in Mahtomedi and later moved to North Carolina, where her family was living at the time of the crash.

The recent plane crash near Washington has reopened old wounds for the community affected by the Flight 3407 disaster in Clarence Center 16 years ago. Jennifer West, widow of passenger Ernie West, empathizes deeply with the new victims' families as she recalls the harrowing process she endured.

Posts on social media and GoFundMe say Wendy Shaffer was one of the people on board the American Airlines flight at the time of Wednesday's fatal air collision.

Middletown Councilman Steve West said he spoke with several Middletown residents and friends who told him they had family and friends on that flight.