CANDACE SMITH
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Crews could finish searching for human remains and removing much of the debris from last week's terrorist attack on the Pentagon within a week, officials say.
More than a week after the hijacked commercial jet crashed into the Pentagon, crews had removed over 5,000 tons of debris, Battalion Chief George Lyon of the Arlington County, Va., Fire Department said Wednesday.
``We've been making good progress,'' Lyon said. By next Tuesday, he added, ``We hope to be done with the shoring and the victim search.''
Soldiers and civilian crews, at times wearing chemical suits, gloves, helmets, boots and respirators, described working in 12-hour shifts removing concrete, human remains, evidence and personal items.
``Most of the work being done is by hand and by shovels and we have a lot of people in there, `` said Homer McElroy, an Arlington County firefighter.
Workers are using wheelbarrows as well as miniature bulldozers and other construction equipment.
As of Wednesday, 118 of the 189 victims had been recovered, federal officials said.
``On the first floor (of that area), there literally were no columns. The whole second floor was unsupported,'' said Lyon.
Attorney General John Ashcroft visited the site Wednesday and described it as ``a charred, tangled situation.''
After visiting the site of the World Trade Center three times, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, also toured the Pentagon Wednesday afternoon with Sen. John Warner, R-Va.
``It's been one of the most emotionally wrenching times of my life,'' Clinton said, describing the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.
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