story1258.xml

story1258.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-08-19

I was running late that morning and ran out of my dorm room to my international politics class. I am 19 and a student at The George Washington University in downtown Washington DC. As I went out of the lobby the TV was on showing showing smoke from the first plane. It was about 9:10AM and very confusing. I remember thinking that it must have been a small plane off course or something.

The mood in class was tense. The professor announced that the TAs were trying to call up CNN.com or the Washington Post website on the projector but the websites were jammed. He said that we were going to have class as normal and that especially from a political science perspective it was important to not jump to conclusions and that all we knew was that some sort of plane had crashed into the tower. All through class people's cell phones were ringing, which was very odd. We could also hear fire engine sirens going past the soundproof lecture hall.

At the end of class someone stood up and announced that his parents had just tried to call him on his cell phone three times in a row, so he answered it and they told him that the pentagon had been hit. The professor dismissed class early.

I went to the student union to get breakfast. People were saying something about a car bomb at the State Department which is only a few blocks away. (This turned out to be a false rumor). I remember thinking that I pass the State Department on my way to the field for Ultimate Frisbee practice and I would have to find out what was going on before I went that afternoon.

In between when I paid for my bagel and when I recieved my bagel, the student union was evacuated because of a bomb threat.

I heard rumors that the dorms might be evacuated or that everyone in the dorms might be assembled and accounted for.

I went back to my dorm. I stood in the lobby with about 20 other people and realized that the trade center had been hit twice and the pentagon had been hit as well. All of the sudden I realized that this had happened while I was in class and I'm sure my family was worried about me.

I went upstairs. One of my roomates told me that my father had called as had one of my friends from home. We turned on the tv to see the news.

I tried to call home, but I could not get a dial tone. I sent an e-mail out to everyone in my address book telling them that I was okay, but that I might be evacuated for a while so they should not worry if they could not get ahold of me. I also told them that at that time I could only recieve calls coming in and could not make calls.

I signed on instant messanger and two of my friends immediately IMed me asking if I was safe. One of them went to the University of Kansas and one to the University of Tulsa. I told them I was alright and asked one to call my dad at work and tell him to try to call me and asked the other to call my house in Tulsa and leave a message.

Just then my cousin called me. He works for the mint and his fiance also works for the government. He told me that his fiance was out of the office that day and he had not tracked her down, but when he did they were going to his parents' house in Baltimore. I told him that I wanted to come and asked him to call me back when he knew what was going to happen.

Then my dad got through. I told him that I was okay and that although I did not think it was necessary, I would get out of the city. I put up an away message telling everyone that I was okay and was leaving the city.

My cousin called back soon after. He said that his fiance was with her boss and that they would meet us at a particular metro station.

I found my RA and told her that I was leaving and gave her my aunt's phone number if I needed to be accounted for later on. I put my toothbrush and a change of clothing in my backpack and headed for the metro station.

The metro trains were all screwed up. GW is the last stop in the District and as I got on a train going north, I heard a loud sigh of anguish as it was announced that trains would not go into Virginia and everyone would have to get off the southbound trains.

The trains were packed. There were tons of military and law enforcement people going everywhere to report. I remember thinking that if a military person needed to get on the train, I would get off and let them have my spot.

I got to my transfer point and had to wait about 20 minutes for the next train. When I got to the station I wanted, my cousin got off the same train in the car right behind mine. I had been looking for him, but the cars were so packed that I just gave up.

We met his fiance and her boss and went back to the boss's house. He and his wife were very nice and gave us food (I suddenly realized that I had not eaten all day). They were elders in their church and were planning a prayer service for that night. They had two small children who knew something was different that day because their father was home in the middle of the day.

In the late afternoon, one of my other cousins was able to come pick us up and take us to my aunt's house. We watched TV for a long time and then went out to dinner. That night my uncle drove us back to DC.

When I got back to my computer, I had over forty responses to my away message. Mostly short messages saying they were glad I was okay. I called my parents again. My mom had talked to all of our relatives and assured them I was okay.

I called everyone in my address book who had not responded to my away message or e-mail and told them I was okay. I called my friends' parents who I knew would worry about me. I called a few of my closest friends.

The first time I donated blood was a week after I turned 17 in a Labor Day drive. My blood type is O+ and I'm in high demand. I wrote another e-mail to all of my friends giving them a little more detail about me being okay. I urged them all to give blood and I said that if they could not or did not want to give blood, they should go with a friend and lend support.

I went around my dorm and knocked on doors and told people that there was a blood donation center that opened at 8 am the next morning a few blocks away. I said that I was leaving a little before 8 and anyone who wanted to could come with me.

The next morning, September 12, about 15 of us went to the Red Cross donation center to find that it was closed and we were directed to the national office a few blocks away. We got there about 8:30 am and the line was already to the door. As we sat around waiting our turn to donate, tons of photographers and reporters took our picture and interviewed us as students giving blood. The President of the Red Cross was talking to people on the beds. I had a class at 12:30 and I was sure that 4 hours was plenty of time for me to donate and make it to class. However, we did not get out until close to 1pm. As we left, the line was out the door, down the stairs, out the door to the building, and curled around the block. Muslim groups and a radio station were there with huge umbrellas and passing out water to the waiting people.