SHIRLEY, N.Y. — Relatives and friends of the 230 people who died when TWA Flight 800 exploded off Long Island are establishing a fund to help maintain a memorial to the victims.

The TWA Flight 800 International Memorial Endowment Fund has already received donations from several law firms that are prominent in the aviation field.

An official fund-raising kickoff press conference was scheduled for Wednesday at the memorial in Smith Point Park. The park is the piece of land closest to where the Boeing jetliner crashed in July 1996. Volunteers estimate it costs an average of $150,000 to maintain the memorial site.

The organization Independent Group Home Living assists the maintenance efforts.

A four-year investigation determined that TWA 800 was destroyed by a center fuel-tank explosion — likely caused by a spark from a short-circuit.