John Donnelly, the chief of Washington D.C.'s Fire and EMS, told reporters Thursday morning that "we are now at a point where we are switching from a rescue operation to a recovery operation."
"At this point we don't believe there are any survivors from this accident," he said.
Donnelly said some 300 responders have worked through the night in "extremely frigid conditions."
So far they have recovered the bodies of 27 passengers from the plane and one from the helicopter, and the medical examiner's office has taken the lead on reuniting the victims with their loved ones.
Thirty-seven victims remain unaccounted for. Donnelly said responders will continue working to recover the rest of the bodies.
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