Ashburn and the wider Northern Virginia community is reeling today as word spreads that many of the victims in Wednesday’s commercial jet crash were from Loudoun and Fairfax Counties.
American Eagle Flight 5342 from Wichita, Kansas to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport crashed into the Potomac River after the plane apparently collided with a helicopter. All 64 people on board the jet are believed dead as well as three people on the helicopter.
Many of the passengers were connected to the Northern Virginia ice skating community and many of them trained at the Ashburn Ice House on Smith Switch Road in Ashburn.
“The skating community is a small tight knit community. This is effecting a lot of the individuals of the community,” Rob Lorenzen, the general manager of the Ashburn Ice House, told NBC4 News. “Anyone that was skating in the national development program this last week in Wichita are exemplary skaters. They have been working hard at their skills, hard at their craft. They’re the best of the best. They’re young. They’re all young and.. they all had big goals.”
While names of all the victims have not been released by officials, People Magazine is reporting that the Livingston family of Ashburn is among the victims. Friends of the family are confirming this sad news as well.
Peter Livingston, his wife Donna Livingston, and their ice skating daughters, Everly and Alydia Livingston, lived in Ashburn Village and were reportedly returning on Flight 5342 from a training camp and the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita.
We are told that Peter Livingston was known for building an ice skating rink in his yard each winter.

The Livingston girls had a large following on social media where they shared their skating adventures and accomplishments.
Alydia (left) and Everly (right), are pictured in the photo at the top of this story, taken last week in Wichita and posted to their Instagram page.
As The Burn reported earlier today, a coach from the Ashburn Ice House and former “Disney on Ice” performer — Inna Volanskaya — is also believed to have died in the crash.

Other victims may also be from Loudoun County and the county’s public school system issued a statement: “Our hearts are heavy as we process the devastating news of last night’s tragic plane crash over the Potomac River involving an American Airlines flight and an Army helicopter,” it read in part.
“This unimaginable loss has deeply affected our community, and with great sorrow, we have learned that multiple victims were former LCPS students,” the statement continued. “Many other Loudoun families have also been impacted, and we extend our deepest condolences to all those grieving in the wake of this tragedy.”