nmah156.xml

nmah156.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-08-18

I have worked in 2 World Financial Center since 1991, and I would pass through the WTC at least 2 times a day. On that morning, I went to the cash machine on the way to work: I still have the receipt (2 World Trade Center, 09/11/01, time 8:38, ATM number 00681-1).

Moments after I got to my desk on the 31st floor of 2 WFC, I heard the first explosion. My office window faces north, thus I saw only a scattering of paper and other debris initially, and I assumed a plane had exploded in mid-air.

I went with my colleagues to the windows facing the towers. We saw the North Tower in flames for the top 10 - 15 stories. In the first 30 seconds or so, no one seemed to know what to make of it. It seemed to be a contained event. We saw that at least the sprinklers were going. I called my wife and left a message on the machine, that there had been some sort of a bomb and that we were unaffected. No one thought of evacuating.

Then the people started to jump out of the building. Many people turned away and were in shock as the action seemed to wind down. On my mind was the thought: "How freaked out are the people in the (yet unaffected) South Tower?"

A very loud explosion and a large fireball then came out two-thirds up the South Tower. This time, a lot of people saw the plane coming. At that point, the World Financial Center evacuation took place. It was never announced; rather, it was assumed.

The only exits of the WFC empty out onto West Street, so that is where everyone had to go. Some very calm building employees herded the slow-moving lines of people back through the Winter Garden and to the side of the marina.

I was able to use my two-way pager to send messages to my wife on her cellular phone (I still have the messages). Likewise, mine was one of the few cellular phones that was working, albeit intermittently. I was able to contact my wife (who had no television signals) and the wives of friends.

My colleagues and I were two or three blocks north when there was another loud noise. It sounded like another explosion, but a few observant people noticed through the smoke that the South Tower was gone. At this point, the masses of evacuees were being strongly encouraged to move north. I got separated from my coworkers (and my cell phone), and proceeded uptown, witnessing also the slow-motion collapse of the North Tower.

After several hours of wandering and speaking to everyone along the way, I got in touch again with my wife. She told me that I was invited to the apartment of a staff member if I had nowhere else to go. From 12 noon until 6 p.m. that's where I stayed, watching the collapse of 7 WTC, being emotional on the phone with my wife and 2 children, and soaking up all of the cable news I could.

While riding the Long Island Railroad home that evening and while driving to Westchester County the next morning (where the company backup site is located), I saw an abbreviated lower Manhattan covered in heavy smoke.

I first went back to my office on October 15, 2001 (to retrieve only the essential office materials). The fire was still burning strong, and the shells of 4, 5, and 6 WTC were still standing. The stench of burning was overwhelming. The ruins of the towers were still piled high.

Any loud noise makes me jump.