story8092.xml

story8092.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-23

At about 8:45AM on 9/11 I sat down to migrate the morning QVC.com homepage live to the webfarm, as we always update it at 9am. A teammate of mine had tuned the TV in the Migration cubicle to the news covering the 1st tower, which shocked and dismayed me, but I thought it was just an accident. I remembered that a bomber had crashed into the Empire State during WWII and figured it was another such situation. As I checked the links on the homepage, dividing my attention between my job and the live news coverage, I saw the second plane strike and heard the shocked silence, then startled cries of the newscasters as the realization sunk in. I migrated the homepage, walked back to my team in a daze and told them a second plane had struck. Soon, there were a dozen people milling around the TV watching the coverage, blank expressions of incomprehension on their faces. I went back to my desk and started working. I had too much to do to consider the implications. People kept asking me if I thought they would collapse, and I said no, citing the bomber accident.

A little while later, our EVP, R.R., came out of his office and said "the first tower just collapsed." I said "really?" and he said yes. I stood up so I could see him, and he has a look of deep pain in his eyes, something one hardly expects to see in an experienced exec that had been around the block more than a few times. I sat down and went back to work, eyes watering. People were still hovering around the TV monitor. About a half hour later, R.R. came out of his office again, and said "the second tower just fell," and the question "really?" sounded hollow and distant as I said it. About a half hour after that, QVC broadcast went off the air, and Doug Briggs sent everyone in the company home.

My best friend John's birthday was that day, and I had planned to meet him for lunch anyway. We drove to a cafe and had a quiet lunch together, trying not to think too much about what was happening. We didn't want to sit in front of the TV any more than we had to. The weather was wonderful, and we talked a lot about how we were experiencing our own Pearl Harbor, and how our generation was finally finding out how it must have felt to our parents. We talked about the war that was sure to follow.

The next day, I removed all the products and promotions from the homepage of Qvc.com and replaced them with a link to the American Red Cross and this message: "Today, we grieve with America. Our hearts go out to all those who have lost loved ones, or whose family members or friends have been injured in yesterday's tragedies in New York City, Washington D.C. and outside of Pittsburgh PA. We wish to express our gratitude to all those who have been helping...and continue to help in rescue efforts." I migrated the page, and a printout of it still handgs in my cubicle today.