From elsewhere
WCA MD-82 Venezuela night-time loss of control after loss of second engine.
Possible Precursor: NTSB #LAX83IA174.
Double sequential flameout on empty wingtanks in day visual conditions after flight-crew became distracted by a knob falling off a control set on the center console and they neglected to switch on the center section fuel transfer pumps (per the checklist). Crew finally discovered their error and achieved a relight at 12,000ft.
Despite West Caribbean Awys being an acknowledged ailing airline, the reality is that a double flame-out at night can happen and its a very dark hole to climb out of. The STBY attitude gyro runs off the main battery for a max of 30 minutes. There is no RAM AIR Turbine and the APU can be a deferred maint item but in any case, after a double flame-out the APU must be windmill started (and not cranked it kills the battery). High altitude APU starts are frequently unsuccessful due to frozen and viscous oil. There is no separate emergency battery. Human error is deemed as likely as any other maint-related cause but technical factors make recovery from a double flame-out at night highly unlikely for an average crew.
It is believed that the WC707 crew were simply overwhelmed by developments.