The names of every person who died in the 2001 and 1993 attacks are inscribed into bronze panels edging the Memorial pools, a powerful reminder of the largest loss of life resulting from a foreign attack on American soil and the greatest single loss of rescue personnel in American history.
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On Sept. 12, I made it into work. Every year I also post their names on Facebook. The scene of planes ramming into the Twin Towers flashes the into minds of the visitors. A few minutes later, when the voice of Matt Lauer intoned that this was no accident, not when a second plane crashed into the second tower, I was driving in the center of Gladwyne and nearly hit a street sign from the shock. “I was fortunate enough not to go in”. Less than a month earlier, there had been a paraglider whose parachute got snagged on the torch of the Statue of Liberty. As I walked through Park Slope to reach my neighborhood of Windsor Terrace, I saw an older Middle Eastern man crying on a stoop. I told her the story, but I said don’t worry. When the towers collapsed, Wadlington wrote, she joined other pedestrians and ran for her life. She said that with the buildings collapsing around her, the smoke billowing toward her and the people, herself included, running for their lives, it was like being in a bad movie. The police had cordoned off Owen Grundy Pier and were telling people to move away from the area. The route was lined with protesters and when one of them shouted in a thick Queens’ accent, “You’re a disgrace to your uniform, Fadder”, I bristled. By that time, both towers were on fire but were still standing. A nurse walked behind her. As they watched the events unfold, she smoked a cigarette and he stood with her rather than go back into the buildings.
I don’t recall seeing or hearing the first tower fall.
“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing”, Paul says. All of a sudden it seemed, there was just one tower left standing. I was horrified but I tried to keep my feelings contained. I knew there had to be a chance some guys will live. I got better marks but when the coveted job with the biggest broker opened up, Tai got it and I was mightily pissed off. One shot. Then I swung my camera to the opposite direction as I heard people gasp behind me. The crowd looked on in horror and disbelief. I physically ducked planes, jumped at sirens, and cried when the garbage truck stopped – the loud boom, constantly startled me. Then somebody asked me angrily, “How dare you take photos at a moment like this?”
Although he isn’t a photojournalist, Rose did document his experiences during the aftermath of the tragedy. Later in the film, he goes to the towers and does this himself. Light from “Tribute in Light” shines for four miles into the night sky from 88 7,000-watt xenon bulbs at the base of the two 48-foot squares in the 9/11 Memorial, reminding us of where the Twin Towers were in the skyline.
I found a city that was vibrant and full of life.
In the days following the attacks, correspondents and columnists from The Philadelphia Tribune reported from Washington, New York and Philadelphia.
Katrina managed to get to a telephone and get word to the family that she was OK.
“But just as we started moving down the street we heard the start of the rumble”.
I drove to school, listening to the radio. I was coming around the bend and I actually saw the second plane hit the tower.
As hard as it can be to revisit the events of 9/11, every once in a while I will mention the destruction of 7 WTC when I need to convince IT personnel or C-Suite executives how unexpected and how devastating the loss of critical digital information can be. At some point you were redirected to carry buckets from the pile. Some days, it’s awesome to say, you can still smell it.
Let us never forget.
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It was then used in a documentary produced with ITV Studios in 2002. I think I called Mom before I left the office, when the first plane hit. I see burnt-out, destroyed fire trucks, wrecked cars, broken windows, everything! Jim did not get to Ground Zero until the next day. I am thankful for the bravery of the police and firefighters.
