Woman killed in Southwest flight had Vermont ties

WILLISTON, Vt. (AP) - Family members are mourning a Vermont native and mother of two who died Tuesday on a Southwest Airlines flight.

Marianne Riordan recalled her 43-year-old sister-in-law, Jennifer Riordan, as a “vivacious” person who had an “aura and a positive karma about her.”

Jennifer Riordan died on a flight heading from New York’s LaGuardia Airport to Dallas that made an emergency landing in Philadelphia.

The engine exploded and shrapnel hit the plane. Passengers say Riordan was partially sucked out of a window that was damaged by debris.

School officials have confirmed Riordan attended a Catholic elementary school in Burlington and graduated from Colchester High School.

WCAX-TV reports Riordan graduated from Champlain College before moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she worked as a bank executive.