story4589.xml

story4589.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

We were an appraisal management company. As an ex-New Yorker I had no trouble dealing with the appraisers in the North East so I was on the phone with my New York appraiser when we started haveing trouble with the phones. One of my co-workers anounced in a loud voice that a plane had just hit the World Trade Center. (She had been on line and notification had come over the computer) Most of us thought it was a hoax and said "Yeah, right" then the word came that the second tower had been hit. There was total silence and disbelief. People were trying to call family and friends. I tried calling my appraisers in the North East and was unable to get through (the phones were no longer working). Some of us sat in total shocked silence while others cried, some softly and others out loud. A radio was produced and we stood around it listening and holding each other. Many of us had family and friends in New York and Washington. One girl finally got word that her mother who lives in Washington DC was all right. Another got word that an uncle had been hurt at the World Trade Center. His leg had been broken but it was a few days before his family was able to locate him.