story4263.xml
Title
story4263.xml
Source
born-digital
Media Type
story
Date Entered
2002-09-11
911DA Story: Story
September 11, 2001 had begun like every other day for me; there wasn't a strange or gut feeling about something going wrong that day. It had only been a month since I've started working at NYU Medical Center-Tisch Hospital. I had graduated from college that May, and it was my first employment as a Registered Nurse.
I can remember the events of 9/11/01 as clear as day. About 15 newly employed RN's, including myself, were in one of our orientation classes up on the 12th floor. As the instructor began to teach, we heard sirens of all kinds. However, since it was NYC we just thought that there was nothing out of the ordinary going on. The sirens became louder and greater. Moments later, a charge nurse ran into the room and said, "An airplane has crashed into one of the twin towers! The hospital is now in emergency mode, and class is shut down as of right now!" No one knew what to do or say or think for that matter.
We all went to the solarium to see the TV, and sure enough there was an image of a twin tower with an airplane in it. By the time we got to the TV, both twin towers were struck. A sense of panic filled the room, and all thoughts of it being a freak accident were shattered. We knew that it was something greater, and more terrifying than we would have ever imagined having happened in our own backyard. Our people were the targets of a terrorist attack.
I then heard the news of the attacks in Washington, D.C.. This was when reality hit me. One of my dearest and oldest friends was in DC for school and an internship for that semester. Immediately I tried to contact my mother to let her know that I was fine and to check on my friend for me. It took about an hour to get through the lines but I finally did. No one heard from my friend, but they were going to keep trying to contact her for me (I later found out that she was safe and unharmed).
The remainder of the day I went to help on 13east, the unit where I would work permanently after orientation was over. From the 13th floor all we could see is a huge cloud of dark smoke form were the twin towers once stood. I could only stare in disbelief.
They kept us at work until about 5pm and then told us we can go home, since they didn't need any extra nurses as of yet. As I walked out of the hospital, an overwhelming feeling of needing to do something came over me. I wanted to help. I needed to help. Getting on a bus/train to get back home to NJ, when they needed Nurses, MD's, EMT's to help, just wasn't something that I could do. There was another Nurse from my orientation group that felt the same. We walked from NYUMC to St. Vincent's Hospital to volunteer our services. However, they already had enough coverage until the night shift and even until then they were pretty well staffed thanks to the outpour of volunteers.
As we were walking away, an officer that overheard our attempts to volunteer, informed us about a triage that was being set up a Chelsea Piers. We then made our way to the west side to Chelsea Piers where we were welcomed. They quickly put us in groups that consisted of an RN, a student of nursing or medicine, EMT, and an MD. Once they set up the triage they gave us a tour and assigned us to stations. My eyes filled with tears to see such a sight. It looked like a scene out of a war film. "Unreal, unreal," these were the only words I managed to make out then.
To the triage came officer's and firefighters with minor injuries. They needed oxygen, aantisepticointments, their eyes flushed, etc. Most of them refused treatment. They said things such as, "Just give a little oxygen and some water . . . I gotta go back . . . my friends, family, coworkers, etc.are in there." That night we hoped and waited to see an ambulance bring survivors. It never happened.
As the night progressed, I saw how the city pulled together as a unit. Officers, firefighter, nurses, doctors, emts, civilians, everyone young and old. All working for our people, our city, our state, our nation.
I would like to thank everyone that volunteered any type of service on 9/11/01. Your country shall remain forever grateful. God bless the victims, family, and our country.
-Jesenia Collazo RN/BSN
I can remember the events of 9/11/01 as clear as day. About 15 newly employed RN's, including myself, were in one of our orientation classes up on the 12th floor. As the instructor began to teach, we heard sirens of all kinds. However, since it was NYC we just thought that there was nothing out of the ordinary going on. The sirens became louder and greater. Moments later, a charge nurse ran into the room and said, "An airplane has crashed into one of the twin towers! The hospital is now in emergency mode, and class is shut down as of right now!" No one knew what to do or say or think for that matter.
We all went to the solarium to see the TV, and sure enough there was an image of a twin tower with an airplane in it. By the time we got to the TV, both twin towers were struck. A sense of panic filled the room, and all thoughts of it being a freak accident were shattered. We knew that it was something greater, and more terrifying than we would have ever imagined having happened in our own backyard. Our people were the targets of a terrorist attack.
I then heard the news of the attacks in Washington, D.C.. This was when reality hit me. One of my dearest and oldest friends was in DC for school and an internship for that semester. Immediately I tried to contact my mother to let her know that I was fine and to check on my friend for me. It took about an hour to get through the lines but I finally did. No one heard from my friend, but they were going to keep trying to contact her for me (I later found out that she was safe and unharmed).
The remainder of the day I went to help on 13east, the unit where I would work permanently after orientation was over. From the 13th floor all we could see is a huge cloud of dark smoke form were the twin towers once stood. I could only stare in disbelief.
They kept us at work until about 5pm and then told us we can go home, since they didn't need any extra nurses as of yet. As I walked out of the hospital, an overwhelming feeling of needing to do something came over me. I wanted to help. I needed to help. Getting on a bus/train to get back home to NJ, when they needed Nurses, MD's, EMT's to help, just wasn't something that I could do. There was another Nurse from my orientation group that felt the same. We walked from NYUMC to St. Vincent's Hospital to volunteer our services. However, they already had enough coverage until the night shift and even until then they were pretty well staffed thanks to the outpour of volunteers.
As we were walking away, an officer that overheard our attempts to volunteer, informed us about a triage that was being set up a Chelsea Piers. We then made our way to the west side to Chelsea Piers where we were welcomed. They quickly put us in groups that consisted of an RN, a student of nursing or medicine, EMT, and an MD. Once they set up the triage they gave us a tour and assigned us to stations. My eyes filled with tears to see such a sight. It looked like a scene out of a war film. "Unreal, unreal," these were the only words I managed to make out then.
To the triage came officer's and firefighters with minor injuries. They needed oxygen, aantisepticointments, their eyes flushed, etc. Most of them refused treatment. They said things such as, "Just give a little oxygen and some water . . . I gotta go back . . . my friends, family, coworkers, etc.are in there." That night we hoped and waited to see an ambulance bring survivors. It never happened.
As the night progressed, I saw how the city pulled together as a unit. Officers, firefighter, nurses, doctors, emts, civilians, everyone young and old. All working for our people, our city, our state, our nation.
I would like to thank everyone that volunteered any type of service on 9/11/01. Your country shall remain forever grateful. God bless the victims, family, and our country.
-Jesenia Collazo RN/BSN
Collection
Citation
“story4263.xml,” September 11 Digital Archive, accessed December 22, 2025, https://911digitalarchive.org/items/show/14041.