story1617.xml
Title
story1617.xml
Source
born-digital
Media Type
story
Date Entered
2002-08-31
911DA Story: Story
As our train approached the 16th Street station in Philadelphia a little after 9am on September 11th, cell phones began to ring. We heard such comments as, ?Oh no,? ?You?ve got to be kidding,? ?No fooling.? One person turned around and announced, ?The World Trade Towers in New York have been flattened to the ground.?
My husband and I looked at each other and said, ?Oh yeah.?
We entered the elevator in the building where our meeting was held. A security office joined us and told us that a million people in New York had just been killed. Again, my husband and I gave each other that dubious look. As we left the elevator, we decided that something obviously had happened in New York City and we wondered what it could be.
Our meeting had already begun. The room was dark while everyone, oblivious to any unusual activity, quietly watched a video. We could barely sit in our seats so consumed were we by curiosity as to what was happening in New York. Twenty minutes later, the video ended and the lights were turned on.
A woman entered our room and calmly announced that the city of Philadelphia was being evacuated. She informed us that we all were to return home immediately. Those taking the trains were to hurry to them because in a short time all trains would cease operations. No one knew the cause of this. Everyone left calmly and joined the crowds on the streets walking swiftly to their cars, buses, and trains.
The train platform was jammed. Some train lines had already closed down. We asked a few people if they knew what had happened and they told us that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center and stories about hijackings that were hard to believe. People rushed onto our train. Once wedged on, they asked if anyone would drive them to their cars, which were parked along a different train line. Several van owners volunteered. With relief, we finally reached our train station and drove home. We immediately turned on the TV and finally saw and heard about the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as the tragic crash in PA.
My husband and I looked at each other and said, ?Oh yeah.?
We entered the elevator in the building where our meeting was held. A security office joined us and told us that a million people in New York had just been killed. Again, my husband and I gave each other that dubious look. As we left the elevator, we decided that something obviously had happened in New York City and we wondered what it could be.
Our meeting had already begun. The room was dark while everyone, oblivious to any unusual activity, quietly watched a video. We could barely sit in our seats so consumed were we by curiosity as to what was happening in New York. Twenty minutes later, the video ended and the lights were turned on.
A woman entered our room and calmly announced that the city of Philadelphia was being evacuated. She informed us that we all were to return home immediately. Those taking the trains were to hurry to them because in a short time all trains would cease operations. No one knew the cause of this. Everyone left calmly and joined the crowds on the streets walking swiftly to their cars, buses, and trains.
The train platform was jammed. Some train lines had already closed down. We asked a few people if they knew what had happened and they told us that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center and stories about hijackings that were hard to believe. People rushed onto our train. Once wedged on, they asked if anyone would drive them to their cars, which were parked along a different train line. Several van owners volunteered. With relief, we finally reached our train station and drove home. We immediately turned on the TV and finally saw and heard about the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as the tragic crash in PA.
Collection
Citation
“story1617.xml,” September 11 Digital Archive, accessed January 9, 2025, https://911digitalarchive.org/items/show/3959.