Community Chat

[gidgetgh]

To stilloxox, Pugle1 and yahooey- thank you all for sharing your stories.

[focksie]

On 9/11/2014 gidgetgoeshawaiian said:

To stilloxox, Pugle1 and yahooey- thank you all for sharing your stories.

Ditto.

Let us not forget.

[JustJazzmom]

My story:

A normal beautiful day-- the sky was so blue and clear that day and no humidity. I was getting our last son out the door to the bus stop across the street and had the local cable news on. They broke into the normal news to say a plane had just hit the WTC. I saw the footage and immediately switched to NBC TV. I could tell from the film that this was no 'small plane'. My DH had left early that AM to go to NYC where he worked at the World Financial Center (WFC) which is across the street from the World Trade Center (WTC) and is connected by a glass enclosed bridge. He arrived in time from the E subway train to be in the Lobby of the North tower and saw a mass of people coming at him.He ducked down into the subway again and walked across the street below ground getting up in time to see the 2nd plane hit the South Tower.

He knew from seeing the plane hit that we were under attack! After seeing the 2nd plane hit the South tower live on TV, I immediately contacted his office where I was told by one of the secretaries that they were doing a head count now and about to evacuate the building. His office faced the WTC.

I didn't know where he was for about 45 minutes until he managed a call to me via cell from Battery Park. He told me to contact his Mom and let her know he was okay. He said he would walk uptown to the LIRR (Long Island Railroad) at Penn Station as it was total chaos where he was. In the interim, my Dad came by from his house to ask where DH was and we went to my church to say a prayer before we parted to our homes.

He and a colleague he met on the street walked together and the colleague managed to get a portable camera (those that take 20 photos and you send them in to be developed) and was taking photos of the wreckage.

The hardest part for me was how to tell our kids what was happening as they were all in separate schools. Around 1:30PM I drove up to the HS and spoke to our eldest who was already aware because he had his radio with him. His only question to me later was 'why did you wait so long to tell me about how Dad was?' I said, "I wanted to make sure your Dad was completely out of harm's way before coming over to you."

I then drove to the middle school and went to the main office where I was told, you can sign out your child if you need to w/o a problem. I said, no just page my son from his class. The middle son got called out of his English class and I told him that 2 planes crashed into the WTC and that they are no more. Your Dad is okay and we are waiting for the 'all clear' from the LIRR so he can get home soon. My son got a funny look on his face and the entire office staff asked him if he was okay to return to class. He told me later that he had tears in his eyes in the hallway before he headed back to class.

Seeing that reaction from our middle son, I decided to wait till the elementary school let out before telling our youngest who was in 3rd grade at the time.

He reacted the next few days in class by slapping the globe in his class and that is how he reacted to the news of the day.

My DH spent the rest of the day holed up at a nearby luncheonette/bar until the 'all clear' was given from the MTA that the LIRR tunnels under the East River were safe to travel through. He made it home around 3:30PM.

I felt sick at heart in the upcoming weeks as I knew that 'they had used our technology against us'.

I still get a pang whenever I see a low flying airplane in the sky.

[vermint]

Thank you all for sharing your stories...I can't even imagine the feelings of those in the city that day. We were glued to the radio at work, and to the TV at home, listening/watching in disbelief that this could really have happened.

I remember after 3 or 4 days, just not being able to watch anymore. I couldn't bear seeing the pain in the eyes of the firefighters and police officers being interviewed at the site.

A young man who used to work with us was living across the river at the time, and he and his roommates watched from their apartment. They saw people jumping from the burning buildings. He moved back here (South Carolina) after that. He just couldn't deal with the city anymore.

[reiki604]

Thank you all for sharing your stories.

[seattlegirl98026]

Stilloxox, puglet, JustJazzmom, and Yahooey (also anyone else who shares their story).....thank you so very much for sharing your stories. They have brought me to tears. We must never forget.

[NChgOfMyAttitude]

I also thank you for sharing that. I can ""hear"" the pain. I also can't watch the coverage without feeling intensely sad.

[sunala]

On 9/11/2014 gidgetgoeshawaiian said:

To stilloxox, Pugle1 and yahooey- thank you all for sharing your stories.

Yes thank you so much for sharing your harrowing experiences. It had to be a nightmare for you all (((Hug)))

We live an hour away from Ground Zero and although we weren't physically there, I could smell the stench of burning plastic in the air, like when I left a pot with water on the stove and it boiled out, and melted the handle. I couldn't get that smell out of my head for many days.

We were glued to the tv 24/7. I even slept with it on, just in case something else happened. Mayor Giuliani was our hero. As long as he said everything would be okay, I believed him.

We live on Long Island, and are totally dependent on truck deliveries that one way or another have to pass through one of the city's boroughs via bridge or tunnel. We were hearing stories that food deliveries would be halted, as well as other necessities of life. That's when I started saving up extra pills from my prescriptions, just in case something happened again, I'd at least have a little backup. I always have extra food, but really, how long can you save it? I also bought jugs of bottled water and other items I thought I'd need. Of course 13 years later, I have nothing of that stuff left, and have gotten complacent and haven't replaced it.

I wish you all a peaceful day, and may our country never ever ever see such a nightmare again.

[Heiress-inFL]

I was in English class that morning. -HIF

[Shorty2U]

Thank you for sharing your story. Bless your heart.

I remember I was home watching tv after having spine surgery. I watched in horror as I saw the 2nd plane strike the tower on tv. I was in tears and disbelief.

Let us never forget what happened in New York, Washington DC and Pennsylvania on that terrible day, and all the people that were lost.

Saying lots of prayers today for those who lost family and friends, and hoping for a brighter future without terrorism. Praying for peace on earth.