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First of all, to all the people who have e-mailed me - both Joe and I are fine.
We greatly appreciate your concern.
As to the terrorist attack, allow me to provide a little color.
I work in the World Financial Center - directly across West Street from the
World Trade Center twin towers. I was standing at a printer by the window
facing the WTC when the top of the north tower exploded. Pieces of building
the size of a bus were raining down along with what looked like confetti. All
of it was hitting the windows in our building. We immediately evacuated the
building. We had just walked down 27 floors and exited the fire stairwell onto
West Street when this rocket noise was overhead. I thought it was a missile.
1000s of people ran through Battery Park City towards the Hudson River. The
second explosion happened.
I met up with some of my co-workers. We started walking toward the Staten
Island Ferry - on the promenade along the Hudson River. Everyone was trying to
call anyone on his or her cell phones - none worked. Every pay phone we passed
had a line of 20+ people. 2 of my co-workers decided they were going to wait
in Battery Park to figure out how to get to NJ.
True to NYC, construction workers were still working on a new high rise in
Battery Park City and the parks department was mowing the lawns in the Battery
Park as if nothing was going on.
We get to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal - it's a mob scene - literally 10's
of thousands of people are waiting to get on a boat. They announce that the
first ferry out will not be until the bomb squads have searched all the boats.
The ferry terminal has about 50 pay phones - there were lines for all of them,
but we each made at least one call to let people know we were OK. We met
outside the terminal to wait for a boat.
While we were waiting for the boat, we heard a huge explosion and saw tons of
gray smoke and debris flying down the streets towards the ferry. Everyone ran
out of the ferry terminal - we ran in - the boat began to load. Everyone on
the boat grabbed life vests and put them on. People were fighting for life
vests. As the boat is loading the gray smoke and debris are flying past the
boat (it looked like the initial attack scenes from Independence Day - the
movie).
The boat finally left Manhattan - it was not until we passed the Statue of
Liberty that you could see anything out of the windows of the boat. When we
docked in Staten Island and unloaded, we started walking towards my apartment -
a long ramp exiting the Ferry Terminal to the street. We looked towards
Manhattan and saw that the WTC twin towers were gone.
We met three more of my co-workers walking up the ramp - they had no idea where
they were going - they came to my house too. We stopped at a neighborhood
deli so some of them could get some necessities. The proprietor was handing
out bottled water and was offering the phones in the store to anyone that
needed to make a call - the Pharmacy was doing the same.
By the time we got to my Apartment - its 10:30. The people that came with me -
1 Staten Island - 2 Brooklyn, 1 Upper East Side Manhattan and 2 NJ. We spent
the next several hours determining how they would get home. We still have one
girl from NJ staying with us. Her husband is stranded in Brooklyn.
The Staten Island Yankees Baseball stadium (next the ferry terminal) - has been
turned into a triage center. Evidently work has gone on all night.
Looking out my living room window this morning is an unbelievable sight - the
WTC twin towers are gone. Smoke is still billowing across lower Manhattan. I
have no idea how many of my co-workers got out of the area before the buildings
collapsed. I have no idea how much damage was done to the building I work in.
READERS BE WARNED - THE FOLLOWING IS VERY GRAPHIC.
Sunny - one of the girls from Brooklyn - was coming to work, walking down
Liberty Street (the street at the south end of the WTC) when the first
explosion occurred. Body parts were raining down on Liberty Street along with
building debris. She was hit by a hand.
When we exited the fire stair well, before the second plane flew in, we saw
that people were jumping from the top floors of the Trade Center - many of them
on fire.
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Ed, Hi, great to see you who is so close to the incident, is OK! sadly it
will not be a day you will forget. I have read your posting as below, I
couldn't imagine how you must feel then and now, all I do know is no one
really knows what something is like unless you go through it, in which you
did. It must have been hard to write about it. It's terrible that anyone
has to deal and go through these sorts of things... It's hard to know what
to say... I wish you and your friends/family all the best
Mel
P.S I hope Sunny is ok too.
In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
> First of all, to all the people who have e-mailed me - both Joe and I are fine.
> We greatly appreciate your concern.
>
> As to the terrorist attack, allow me to provide a little color.
>
> I work in the World Financial Center - directly across West Street from the
> World Trade Center twin towers. I was standing at a printer by the window
> facing the WTC when the top of the north tower exploded. Pieces of building
> the size of a bus were raining down along with what looked like confetti. All
> of it was hitting the windows in our building. We immediately evacuated the
> building. We had just walked down 27 floors and exited the fire stairwell onto
> West Street when this rocket noise was overhead. I thought it was a missile.
> 1000s of people ran through Battery Park City towards the Hudson River. The
> second explosion happened.
>
> I met up with some of my co-workers. We started walking toward the Staten
> Island Ferry - on the promenade along the Hudson River. Everyone was trying to
> call anyone on his or her cell phones - none worked. Every pay phone we passed
> had a line of 20+ people. 2 of my co-workers decided they were going to wait
> in Battery Park to figure out how to get to NJ.
>
> True to NYC, construction workers were still working on a new high rise in
> Battery Park City and the parks department was mowing the lawns in the Battery
> Park as if nothing was going on.
>
> We get to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal - it's a mob scene - literally 10's
> of thousands of people are waiting to get on a boat. They announce that the
> first ferry out will not be until the bomb squads have searched all the boats.
> The ferry terminal has about 50 pay phones - there were lines for all of them,
> but we each made at least one call to let people know we were OK. We met
> outside the terminal to wait for a boat.
>
> While we were waiting for the boat, we heard a huge explosion and saw tons of
> gray smoke and debris flying down the streets towards the ferry. Everyone ran
> out of the ferry terminal - we ran in - the boat began to load. Everyone on
> the boat grabbed life vests and put them on. People were fighting for life
> vests. As the boat is loading the gray smoke and debris are flying past the
> boat (it looked like the initial attack scenes from Independence Day - the
> movie).
>
> The boat finally left Manhattan - it was not until we passed the Statue of
> Liberty that you could see anything out of the windows of the boat. When we
> docked in Staten Island and unloaded, we started walking towards my apartment -
> a long ramp exiting the Ferry Terminal to the street. We looked towards
> Manhattan and saw that the WTC twin towers were gone.
>
> We met three more of my co-workers walking up the ramp - they had no idea where
> they were going - they came to my house too. We stopped at a neighborhood
> deli so some of them could get some necessities. The proprietor was handing
> out bottled water and was offering the phones in the store to anyone that
> needed to make a call - the Pharmacy was doing the same.
>
> By the time we got to my Apartment - its 10:30. The people that came with me -
> 1 Staten Island - 2 Brooklyn, 1 Upper East Side Manhattan and 2 NJ. We spent
> the next several hours determining how they would get home. We still have one
> girl from NJ staying with us. Her husband is stranded in Brooklyn.
>
> The Staten Island Yankees Baseball stadium (next the ferry terminal) - has been
> turned into a triage center. Evidently work has gone on all night.
>
> Looking out my living room window this morning is an unbelievable sight - the
> WTC twin towers are gone. Smoke is still billowing across lower Manhattan. I
> have no idea how many of my co-workers got out of the area before the buildings
> collapsed. I have no idea how much damage was done to the building I work in.
>
> READERS BE WARNED - THE FOLLOWING IS VERY GRAPHIC.
>
> Sunny - one of the girls from Brooklyn - was coming to work, walking down
> Liberty Street (the street at the south end of the WTC) when the first
> explosion occurred. Body parts were raining down on Liberty Street along with
> building debris. She was hit by a hand.
>
> When we exited the fire stair well, before the second plane flew in, we saw
> that people were jumping from the top floors of the Trade Center - many of them
> on fire.
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Wow Ed,
Your account is as terrifying as any I've heard so far. Perhaps moreso since
I know you, the general feeling of detachment and disbelief refuses to take
hold. I hope only for the best and although I am greatly saddened by the
attacks in general, I am glad to hear that you escaped safely. Every life
saved is a miracle in this case. The whole event seems so discouraging, but
some points of light give me strength - the people rescued, even by
amateurs, the passangers on the plane who managed to call their families to
say last words... with all the pain, these emotional stories give us (or at
least me) some meager hope.
I'm certain as well that you will never forget this day. And also (but of
course, to a lesser degree) I don't think anyone in the world will be able
to. I for one feel it is worse yet than Pearl Harbor in its day. I also fear
we have not seen the last of these attacks. As one of the CNN interviewees
(a psychologist) said, Now that we know the previously unknown, we fill in
the gaps and scare ourselves....
hoping and praying,
-Shiri
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In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
> First of all, to all the people who have e-mailed me - both Joe and I are fine.
> We greatly appreciate your concern.
>
> As to the terrorist attack, allow me to provide a little color.
>
> I work in the World Financial Center - directly across West Street from the
> World Trade Center twin towers. I was standing at a printer by the window
> facing the WTC when the top of the north tower exploded. Pieces of building
> the size of a bus were raining down along with what looked like confetti. All
> of it was hitting the windows in our building. We immediately evacuated the
> building. We had just walked down 27 floors and exited the fire stairwell onto
> West Street when this rocket noise was overhead. I thought it was a missile.
> 1000s of people ran through Battery Park City towards the Hudson River. The
> second explosion happened.
>
> I met up with some of my co-workers. We started walking toward the Staten
> Island Ferry - on the promenade along the Hudson River. Everyone was trying to
> call anyone on his or her cell phones - none worked. Every pay phone we passed
> had a line of 20+ people. 2 of my co-workers decided they were going to wait
> in Battery Park to figure out how to get to NJ.
>
> True to NYC, construction workers were still working on a new high rise in
> Battery Park City and the parks department was mowing the lawns in the Battery
> Park as if nothing was going on.
>
> We get to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal - it's a mob scene - literally 10's
> of thousands of people are waiting to get on a boat. They announce that the
> first ferry out will not be until the bomb squads have searched all the boats.
> The ferry terminal has about 50 pay phones - there were lines for all of them,
> but we each made at least one call to let people know we were OK. We met
> outside the terminal to wait for a boat.
>
> While we were waiting for the boat, we heard a huge explosion and saw tons of
> gray smoke and debris flying down the streets towards the ferry. Everyone ran
> out of the ferry terminal - we ran in - the boat began to load. Everyone on
> the boat grabbed life vests and put them on. People were fighting for life
> vests. As the boat is loading the gray smoke and debris are flying past the
> boat (it looked like the initial attack scenes from Independence Day - the
> movie).
>
> The boat finally left Manhattan - it was not until we passed the Statue of
> Liberty that you could see anything out of the windows of the boat. When we
> docked in Staten Island and unloaded, we started walking towards my apartment -
> a long ramp exiting the Ferry Terminal to the street. We looked towards
> Manhattan and saw that the WTC twin towers were gone.
>
> We met three more of my co-workers walking up the ramp - they had no idea where
> they were going - they came to my house too. We stopped at a neighborhood
> deli so some of them could get some necessities. The proprietor was handing
> out bottled water and was offering the phones in the store to anyone that
> needed to make a call - the Pharmacy was doing the same.
>
> By the time we got to my Apartment - its 10:30. The people that came with me -
> 1 Staten Island - 2 Brooklyn, 1 Upper East Side Manhattan and 2 NJ. We spent
> the next several hours determining how they would get home. We still have one
> girl from NJ staying with us. Her husband is stranded in Brooklyn.
>
> The Staten Island Yankees Baseball stadium (next the ferry terminal) - has been
> turned into a triage center. Evidently work has gone on all night.
>
> Looking out my living room window this morning is an unbelievable sight - the
> WTC twin towers are gone. Smoke is still billowing across lower Manhattan. I
> have no idea how many of my co-workers got out of the area before the buildings
> collapsed. I have no idea how much damage was done to the building I work in.
>
> READERS BE WARNED - THE FOLLOWING IS VERY GRAPHIC.
>
> Sunny - one of the girls from Brooklyn - was coming to work, walking down
> Liberty Street (the street at the south end of the WTC) when the first
> explosion occurred. Body parts were raining down on Liberty Street along with
> building debris. She was hit by a hand.
>
> When we exited the fire stair well, before the second plane flew in, we saw
> that people were jumping from the top floors of the Trade Center - many of them
> on fire.
I'm glad you're OK..... I felt so bad when I first saw what happened.... I
was only over there a few years ago.... standing at the top of the
towers.... It felt so wierd to see them come tumbling down.... I hope this
act unites the whole world as one..... lets just hope...!!!
Kev...: )
www.ozbricks.com/andrastavia
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In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
> First of all, to all the people who have e-mailed me - both Joe and I are fine.
> We greatly appreciate your concern.
>
> As to the terrorist attack, allow me to provide a little color.
>
> I work in the World Financial Center -
I was in that building too. My office is not there, but I have a client there
who I work on site with twice a week. This is what happened to me.
Warning this account is graphic as well.
Well went to what I figured was a usual day, up on the 37th floor. Was talking
with one of the staff when I heard a boom and noticed some rippling in the
shadows off the WTC. I looked up and saw a huge gash in the tower and fire
pouring out and immediately thought a plane had crashed. Ran, grabbing my bag
and headed to the stairwell.
The people from the department and I managed to get to the ground floor, but
just as we exited the building, the second plane flew right over us and crashed
into the building. I saw everything, and it was just luck that I was on that
side, and not the other where the flames came out. But a ton of debris came out
the back too.
It was sheer pandemonium then. Someone behind me ran into me so hard I was
shoved to the ground, cutting open my knuckles as I hit the ground. As I got
up, something charred hit the ground about five feet away from me. It was human
sized and smelled of burnt beef. I did not stick around to look, but got up and
got out of there, turning to a side loading door.
Managed to find one of the people in the department who was stuck there having
an asthma attack. She was also paralyzed in panic. I knew I could not just
leave here there and that if we got to the water we should be relatively safe
from any flames. So I grabbed her arm and led her to the water.
The rest of the department found us, and I stopped walking her once we got to
the water. I then started looking for a phone so I could call my Mom and my
office to tell them I was still in one piece. Couldn't find any, and got back
to the group. The department head and I went off again to try to find which
direction we should start moving too, the area was still to close to the
buildings, and I warned them that they were in a huge risk of falling down.
Finally found a phone, in a bar. The Depart Head said he would wait for me
while I called. I did not get in touch with home but did managed to call work
and told them to please pass a message on to my Mom that I was all right. I
then exited the bar.
To find I was ditched by the Department Head and on my own. Just then I heard a
creaking noise and screaming that building was collapsing. Figuring that I was
on my own, I started quickly moving to Battery Park, but could not out run the
dust storm that spread out in the area.
Ever see pictures of Mount Saint Helens erupting? That's what the cloud was
like. Totally blinding and raining dust and ash.
Kept walking, jumping over ledges to get further along. Eventually I stopped,
held my breath, and converted my buttoned down shirt to a makeshift breathing
mask.
The air cleared and the sun came out again. I found I was by the water still in
a corner area where a bunch of other people had ended up. I must thank the
policemen and policewomen here, they were really doing a great job keeping
people calm and handing out breathing masks. Unfortunately I never got one
cause some jerk snatched the one I had in my hand and ran away.
Well then the second building falls. This time I was ready. I put my make
shift mask back on, got down on the ground, and remembering a portable umbrella
I had with me, opened it up and covered my head. This one was not as bad, it
went in the opposite direction mostly (which actually was the area my brother
was in at the time. He managed to out run it by heading into Greenwich Village
and maneuvering through alleys).
Eventually a bunch of boats, from tug boats to ferries and even sail boats, came
to the railing. IN a quick and organized way, everybody got onto the boats. I
managed to get on one of the ferries, which brought me to Jersey City.
Well wandered around there for a while not sure what to do. Eventually I went
to one of the hotels, just to clean myself from the dust and ash. After that, I
left the bathroom and looked around the hotel lobby. I managed to actually get
some food, which was amazing since downtown Jersey City was closed. After
eating, I asked the desk if they knew if any cabs were running still. None
were, but the trains at Hoboken were still going westward, which meant a way
home. It also meant I had to walk to Hoboken.
After a half an hour walk I arrived at Hoboken and found a train on my route.
But once inside they evacuated cause of a bomb scare. Everybody was quickly
evacuated, and luckily it was just a false alarm. We climbed back in and the
train left, bringing me back to my town. I walked from the station to my house
a few blocks away and finally collapsed once inside the front door.
I was one of the lucky ones. I managed to get out of their with some messed up
lungs and a scared hand. My lungs should clear up in a month. I feel for
everybody else that was their and hope that they keep on finding survivors in
the ruins.
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Well, I am glad to hear that you are allright.
I am new to this site, but this won't stop me from
writing the feelings of relief from hearing about
your survival from this absolutely shocking event.
I sincerely hope that all your co-workers made it as well!
From a canadian friend,
Marc
In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
> First of all, to all the people who have e-mailed me - both Joe and I are • fine.
> We greatly appreciate your concern.
>
> As to the terrorist attack, allow me to provide a little color.
>
> I work in the World Financial Center - directly across West Street from the
> World Trade Center twin towers. I was standing at a printer by the window
> facing the WTC when the top of the north tower exploded. Pieces of building
> the size of a bus were raining down along with what looked like confetti. All
> of it was hitting the windows in our building. We immediately evacuated the
> building. We had just walked down 27 floors and exited the fire stairwell • onto
> West Street when this rocket noise was overhead. I thought it was a missile.
> 1000s of people ran through Battery Park City towards the Hudson River. The
> second explosion happened.
>
> I met up with some of my co-workers. We started walking toward the Staten
> Island Ferry - on the promenade along the Hudson River. Everyone was trying • to
> call anyone on his or her cell phones - none worked. Every pay phone we • passed
> had a line of 20+ people. 2 of my co-workers decided they were going to wait
> in Battery Park to figure out how to get to NJ.
>
> True to NYC, construction workers were still working on a new high rise in
> Battery Park City and the parks department was mowing the lawns in the Battery
> Park as if nothing was going on.
>
> We get to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal - it's a mob scene - literally 10's
> of thousands of people are waiting to get on a boat. They announce that the
> first ferry out will not be until the bomb squads have searched all the boats.
> The ferry terminal has about 50 pay phones - there were lines for all of • them,
> but we each made at least one call to let people know we were OK. We met
> outside the terminal to wait for a boat.
>
> While we were waiting for the boat, we heard a huge explosion and saw tons of
> gray smoke and debris flying down the streets towards the ferry. Everyone ran
> out of the ferry terminal - we ran in - the boat began to load. Everyone on
> the boat grabbed life vests and put them on. People were fighting for life
> vests. As the boat is loading the gray smoke and debris are flying past the
> boat (it looked like the initial attack scenes from Independence Day - the
> movie).
>
> The boat finally left Manhattan - it was not until we passed the Statue of
> Liberty that you could see anything out of the windows of the boat. When we
> docked in Staten Island and unloaded, we started walking towards my apartment • -
> a long ramp exiting the Ferry Terminal to the street. We looked towards
> Manhattan and saw that the WTC twin towers were gone.
>
> We met three more of my co-workers walking up the ramp - they had no idea • where
> they were going - they came to my house too. We stopped at a neighborhood
> deli so some of them could get some necessities. The proprietor was handing
> out bottled water and was offering the phones in the store to anyone that
> needed to make a call - the Pharmacy was doing the same.
>
> By the time we got to my Apartment - its 10:30. The people that came with me • -
> 1 Staten Island - 2 Brooklyn, 1 Upper East Side Manhattan and 2 NJ. We spent
> the next several hours determining how they would get home. We still have one
> girl from NJ staying with us. Her husband is stranded in Brooklyn.
>
> The Staten Island Yankees Baseball stadium (next the ferry terminal) - has • been
> turned into a triage center. Evidently work has gone on all night.
>
> Looking out my living room window this morning is an unbelievable sight - the
> WTC twin towers are gone. Smoke is still billowing across lower Manhattan. I
> have no idea how many of my co-workers got out of the area before the • buildings
> collapsed. I have no idea how much damage was done to the building I work in.
>
> READERS BE WARNED - THE FOLLOWING IS VERY GRAPHIC.
>
> Sunny - one of the girls from Brooklyn - was coming to work, walking down
> Liberty Street (the street at the south end of the WTC) when the first
> explosion occurred. Body parts were raining down on Liberty Street along with
> building debris. She was hit by a hand.
>
> When we exited the fire stair well, before the second plane flew in, we saw
> that people were jumping from the top floors of the Trade Center - many of • them
> on fire.
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In lugnet.general, Doug Kern writes:
> In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
Hi Doug and Ed,
Thanks for sharing your personal experiences with us - however grim your
accounts was, it puts reality to some unreal tv-pictures. Little I can do
here from Denmark except best wishes to you both and your friends and
relatives. The world has lost it's innocence, and tomorrow will never more
be like yesterday. Before and after. I was supposed to go on a weeks course
in New Jersey next month - before I looked forward to it, after it scares me.
Regards from still peaceful Copenhagen - Arne.
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In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
> Looking out my living room window this morning is an unbelievable sight - the
> WTC twin towers are gone. Smoke is still billowing across lower Manhattan. I
> have no idea how many of my co-workers got out of the area before the • buildings
> collapsed. I have no idea how much damage was done to the building I work in.
Just wanted to provide an update:
All of my co-workers are fine. Other than some cuts and bruises (1 man was
trampled, 3 others were hit by debris) and several who are still unable to
return to their homes (in Battery Park City), everyone is good. One co-worker
lost his son-in-law (a fireman). His body was located on Friday. Almost all
of us have lost friends or associates in this disaster.
My company is still searching for temporary office space for my department.
Not sure when I'll be going back to work.
The World Financial Center buildings have all suffered extensive damage from
the collapse of the twin towers (they are shown constantly on the news).
Life in general:
I live 2 blocks from the Staten Island Ferry - the Ferry has been closed to the
public - the ferry is being used to transport rescue workers, iron workers,
police and firemen, as well as supplies, to the site. The Staten Island
Yankees Baseball Stadium (next to the Ferry Terminal) has been used first as a
triage center, now as a rescue operation staging site for rescue workers.
There is a local Bar - Cargo Cafe. The owner is an artist and regularly
repaints the entire outside of the building with murals. By Wednesday morning
the outside of the Cargo Cafe was repainted - an American flag with a silloutte
of the WTC twin towers with the words "and the rockets red glare".
The entire nation has come to the aid of NYC. On Staten Island - the Home
Depot closed to the public for 2 hours. The Home Depot invited the rescue
workers to come to the store and take any supplies they thought would be
necessary. All local stores have been stripped of batteries, socks, work
cloths, Gatoraide, tools, etc. There are long lines to donate these items at
the Baseball Stadium.
How am I coping:
I'm OK. Although the sound of any plane flying nearby is still a little
unnerving (especially the F16s that are flying very low).
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you dont know me but i just wanted to thank you for your posting an d let
you know that many people are thinking and praying for you guys, goodluck
\
In lugnet.general, Ed Jones writes:
> First of all, to all the people who have e-mailed me - both Joe and I are fine.
> We greatly appreciate your concern.
>
> As to the terrorist attack, allow me to provide a little color.
>
> I work in the World Financial Center - directly across West Street from the
> World Trade Center twin towers. I was standing at a printer by the window
> facing the WTC when the top of the north tower exploded. Pieces of building
> the size of a bus were raining down along with what looked like confetti. All
> of it was hitting the windows in our building. We immediately evacuated the
> building. We had just walked down 27 floors and exited the fire stairwell onto
> West Street when this rocket noise was overhead. I thought it was a missile.
> 1000s of people ran through Battery Park City towards the Hudson River. The
> second explosion happened.
>
> I met up with some of my co-workers. We started walking toward the Staten
> Island Ferry - on the promenade along the Hudson River. Everyone was trying to
> call anyone on his or her cell phones - none worked. Every pay phone we passed
> had a line of 20+ people. 2 of my co-workers decided they were going to wait
> in Battery Park to figure out how to get to NJ.
>
> True to NYC, construction workers were still working on a new high rise in
> Battery Park City and the parks department was mowing the lawns in the Battery
> Park as if nothing was going on.
>
> We get to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal - it's a mob scene - literally 10's
> of thousands of people are waiting to get on a boat. They announce that the
> first ferry out will not be until the bomb squads have searched all the boats.
> The ferry terminal has about 50 pay phones - there were lines for all of them,
> but we each made at least one call to let people know we were OK. We met
> outside the terminal to wait for a boat.
>
> While we were waiting for the boat, we heard a huge explosion and saw tons of
> gray smoke and debris flying down the streets towards the ferry. Everyone ran
> out of the ferry terminal - we ran in - the boat began to load. Everyone on
> the boat grabbed life vests and put them on. People were fighting for life
> vests. As the boat is loading the gray smoke and debris are flying past the
> boat (it looked like the initial attack scenes from Independence Day - the
> movie).
>
> The boat finally left Manhattan - it was not until we passed the Statue of
> Liberty that you could see anything out of the windows of the boat. When we
> docked in Staten Island and unloaded, we started walking towards my apartment -
> a long ramp exiting the Ferry Terminal to the street. We looked towards
> Manhattan and saw that the WTC twin towers were gone.
>
> We met three more of my co-workers walking up the ramp - they had no idea where
> they were going - they came to my house too. We stopped at a neighborhood
> deli so some of them could get some necessities. The proprietor was handing
> out bottled water and was offering the phones in the store to anyone that
> needed to make a call - the Pharmacy was doing the same.
>
> By the time we got to my Apartment - its 10:30. The people that came with me -
> 1 Staten Island - 2 Brooklyn, 1 Upper East Side Manhattan and 2 NJ. We spent
> the next several hours determining how they would get home. We still have one
> girl from NJ staying with us. Her husband is stranded in Brooklyn.
>
> The Staten Island Yankees Baseball stadium (next the ferry terminal) - has been
> turned into a triage center. Evidently work has gone on all night.
>
> Looking out my living room window this morning is an unbelievable sight - the
> WTC twin towers are gone. Smoke is still billowing across lower Manhattan. I
> have no idea how many of my co-workers got out of the area before the buildings
> collapsed. I have no idea how much damage was done to the building I work in.
>
> READERS BE WARNED - THE FOLLOWING IS VERY GRAPHIC.
>
> Sunny - one of the girls from Brooklyn - was coming to work, walking down
> Liberty Street (the street at the south end of the WTC) when the first
> explosion occurred. Body parts were raining down on Liberty Street along with
> building debris. She was hit by a hand.
>
> When we exited the fire stair well, before the second plane flew in, we saw
> that people were jumping from the top floors of the Trade Center - many of them
> on fire.
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