jugofpropwash
I regard it as unlikely that the vertical fin would be overstressed during that phase of flight. Bare in mind the inertia of the mass, with exception of a running engine of course is not high enough to cause anything to go beyond it's design stress limit. In addition, the actual point of failure is at 150% of design.
The news this morning mentioned an unidentifiable clicking sound for a short period of time twice before any reaction of the crew was noted. Any A300 driver out thee able to shed some light on the sound?
And on the byby folks, this forum is for professionals of this industry, what ever their opinions or believes, to discuss and speculate about such events. Should anyone feel the need for hard facts and noting else consult
www.faa.gov or
www.ntsb.gov.