1 00:00:05,881 --> 00:00:22,281 Speaker 1: Approach production, tell me if you can't remember fifteen minutes 2 00:00:22,361 --> 00:00:23,921 Speaker 1: before it all happened. 3 00:00:25,201 --> 00:00:29,561 Speaker 2: So At, I was in my boss's office at the time. 4 00:00:30,041 --> 00:00:33,040 Speaker 2: So we had the forty seventh floor of one World Trade, 5 00:00:33,040 --> 00:00:36,080 Speaker 2: which is the North Tower, and our office was on 6 00:00:36,161 --> 00:00:38,080 Speaker 2: the west side of the building, so we faced the 7 00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:41,200 Speaker 2: Hudson River in New Jersey on the other side. So 8 00:00:41,321 --> 00:00:44,721 Speaker 2: in the southwest corner in my boss's office, you'd be 9 00:00:44,721 --> 00:00:46,641 Speaker 2: able to see the Statue of Liberty New York Carver. 10 00:00:46,921 --> 00:00:51,081 Speaker 2: You can see the bridge, the Barrizontal Bridge, plus all 11 00:00:51,081 --> 00:00:56,121 Speaker 2: the Jersey Liberty State Park everything and Ellis Island. So 12 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:58,560 Speaker 2: her office, of course had the corner, and we were 13 00:00:58,601 --> 00:01:02,481 Speaker 2: in there because we were on a meeting call with 14 00:01:03,001 --> 00:01:06,681 Speaker 2: Our home office was in charlot At, North Carolina, so 15 00:01:06,801 --> 00:01:10,881 Speaker 2: that's where we were on a meeting with those At 16 00:01:11,560 --> 00:01:14,441 Speaker 2: about eight thirty quarter to nine was the meeting, so 17 00:01:14,481 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 2: we were all shoved in that off. There were about 18 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:19,361 Speaker 2: eight of us in that and the first plane hit 19 00:01:19,401 --> 00:01:22,840 Speaker 2: at eight forty six, so it hit my building, but 20 00:01:22,961 --> 00:01:25,800 Speaker 2: it hit on the up hit them around the ninety 21 00:01:25,801 --> 00:01:28,481 Speaker 2: second floor, so I was about halfway up to where 22 00:01:28,521 --> 00:01:33,161 Speaker 2: it hit and it hit behind us when a lot 23 00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:36,161 Speaker 2: of the debris went straight through the building. So as 24 00:01:36,200 --> 00:01:39,441 Speaker 2: we were looking in south when the plane hit, we 25 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,801 Speaker 2: jumped up because the building actually rocks where you're almost 26 00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:45,961 Speaker 2: thrown off your feet, and it sort of wobbled three 27 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:49,721 Speaker 2: times and then it righted itself. But I could see 28 00:01:50,081 --> 00:01:55,600 Speaker 2: south stuff falling, panes of glass, concrete, things that don't 29 00:01:55,601 --> 00:01:57,881 Speaker 2: register at the time, but when you think about it later, 30 00:01:58,281 --> 00:02:03,161 Speaker 2: pieces of airplane like you'd see like seatbelt buckles or 31 00:02:04,001 --> 00:02:06,561 Speaker 2: a seat. You know, there wasn't that much left of it, 32 00:02:06,641 --> 00:02:09,121 Speaker 2: but yeah, So I went over by the window that 33 00:02:09,201 --> 00:02:13,601 Speaker 2: faced out. I looked down the Married Hotel, which was 34 00:02:14,161 --> 00:02:17,361 Speaker 2: twenty four floors, was attached to the south tower, and 35 00:02:17,401 --> 00:02:19,921 Speaker 2: I could see the roof of that was on fire. 36 00:02:20,001 --> 00:02:24,001 Speaker 2: They were causing the street on fire. And my first 37 00:02:24,041 --> 00:02:26,520 Speaker 2: thought was it was like a gas explosion of something, 38 00:02:26,601 --> 00:02:30,961 Speaker 2: because nobody envisions an airliner hitting your building. Yeah, you know, 39 00:02:31,441 --> 00:02:35,081 Speaker 2: in down in Manhattan. When it hit, we, like I said, 40 00:02:35,081 --> 00:02:37,041 Speaker 2: we jumped up. We wobble back and forth. I went 41 00:02:37,041 --> 00:02:39,441 Speaker 2: at it to the main office to see what was 42 00:02:39,481 --> 00:02:43,840 Speaker 2: going on with the people out there. There were starting 43 00:02:43,921 --> 00:02:47,201 Speaker 2: smoke starting to come in under some of the doorways 44 00:02:47,201 --> 00:02:49,921 Speaker 2: that we had two doorways in our office that led 45 00:02:50,481 --> 00:02:54,401 Speaker 2: two staircases out of the building. But another thing about 46 00:02:54,401 --> 00:02:56,961 Speaker 2: growing up in New York City is when you learn 47 00:02:58,321 --> 00:03:00,881 Speaker 2: with the fire department as a kid, when I when 48 00:03:00,921 --> 00:03:03,481 Speaker 2: we called the cops, sometimes they didn't show up. When 49 00:03:03,481 --> 00:03:06,281 Speaker 2: you call an ambulance, sometimes didn't show up. But when 50 00:03:06,321 --> 00:03:09,281 Speaker 2: someone ran that fire alarm, they were coming. So you 51 00:03:09,520 --> 00:03:12,641 Speaker 2: have the utmost confidence in the New York City Fire Department. 52 00:03:12,921 --> 00:03:14,961 Speaker 2: And I could see some of their rigs pulling up 53 00:03:15,001 --> 00:03:18,240 Speaker 2: outside the building. So as people were panicked, starting to 54 00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:19,880 Speaker 2: get a little nervous, I was telling them, right, fire 55 00:03:19,881 --> 00:03:22,321 Speaker 2: departments here were okay, it's above us, we can get 56 00:03:22,361 --> 00:03:26,081 Speaker 2: out below some of the smoke coming in. I took 57 00:03:26,161 --> 00:03:28,321 Speaker 2: my jacket from my desk and I shoved it under 58 00:03:28,361 --> 00:03:31,921 Speaker 2: the door so the smoke wouldn't come in. And I 59 00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:33,721 Speaker 2: took the back of my hand. I was tapping it 60 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:38,601 Speaker 2: against the doorknob because heat conducts through the metal, and 61 00:03:38,641 --> 00:03:41,281 Speaker 2: if the doorknob is hot, you do not open that door. 62 00:03:41,321 --> 00:03:43,081 Speaker 2: That means it's fire on the other side of the door. 63 00:03:43,681 --> 00:03:46,041 Speaker 2: But the smoke was coming in, it was like, all right, 64 00:03:46,121 --> 00:03:50,561 Speaker 2: let's get our stuff together, let's get out again. We didn't. 65 00:03:50,561 --> 00:03:55,521 Speaker 2: We didn't know the magnitude of what was going on upstairs. 66 00:03:56,081 --> 00:03:58,121 Speaker 2: And because we worked in a bank, we had a 67 00:03:58,161 --> 00:04:01,121 Speaker 2: lot of securities out that you just can't run out 68 00:04:01,161 --> 00:04:04,401 Speaker 2: and leave. You know, they're worth a lot of money. 69 00:04:04,521 --> 00:04:06,321 Speaker 2: And we had we actually had a vault on the 70 00:04:06,361 --> 00:04:09,001 Speaker 2: floor with a little moat that you needed a bridge. 71 00:04:09,481 --> 00:04:13,561 Speaker 2: It was like forty seven tons suspended on our floor. 72 00:04:14,281 --> 00:04:16,961 Speaker 2: So a lot of our employees were taking their bonds 73 00:04:16,961 --> 00:04:18,801 Speaker 2: and stuff off their desk, putting it in their lock 74 00:04:18,841 --> 00:04:22,361 Speaker 2: boxes and bringing into the vault. At which time I said, 75 00:04:22,401 --> 00:04:25,721 Speaker 2: all right, you guys do that. I went out into 76 00:04:25,761 --> 00:04:28,241 Speaker 2: the hallway. We had the electronic eyes at the time 77 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:30,041 Speaker 2: you swipe your card to get in and out of 78 00:04:30,041 --> 00:04:33,001 Speaker 2: the floor. I asked someone to hold the door open 79 00:04:33,041 --> 00:04:35,400 Speaker 2: for me so I could get back in. We had 80 00:04:35,440 --> 00:04:38,001 Speaker 2: a satellite office around the other side of the building, 81 00:04:38,641 --> 00:04:41,521 Speaker 2: and each building, each floor was one acre. It was 82 00:04:41,561 --> 00:04:44,080 Speaker 2: two hundred feet each side. So I ran to the 83 00:04:44,121 --> 00:04:46,761 Speaker 2: satellite office. I know we had three girls working in there. 84 00:04:46,801 --> 00:04:49,321 Speaker 2: I wanted to see if they were okay. When I 85 00:04:49,361 --> 00:04:52,161 Speaker 2: got there, there was nobody in there. It turns out 86 00:04:52,801 --> 00:04:57,321 Speaker 2: one was off that day. One was bringing her kid 87 00:04:57,440 --> 00:05:00,801 Speaker 2: to first day of school, which was September eleventh that year, 88 00:05:00,841 --> 00:05:02,681 Speaker 2: So that saved a lot of people from being in 89 00:05:02,681 --> 00:05:06,320 Speaker 2: the building because first school, what the parents do, they 90 00:05:06,401 --> 00:05:09,721 Speaker 2: bring their kids to school. So she wasn't in, and 91 00:05:09,761 --> 00:05:11,521 Speaker 2: the third girl that was in there, as soon as 92 00:05:11,521 --> 00:05:14,201 Speaker 2: the plane hit took off, the smartest one out of everyone, 93 00:05:14,841 --> 00:05:18,601 Speaker 2: she was out of there on her way out. So 94 00:05:18,641 --> 00:05:21,081 Speaker 2: I went back to my office. By then, people were 95 00:05:21,201 --> 00:05:25,041 Speaker 2: putting wet rags over their faces, and on the way there, 96 00:05:25,081 --> 00:05:27,321 Speaker 2: I passed one of the staircases. I opened the door, 97 00:05:27,320 --> 00:05:29,921 Speaker 2: it was just a massive people coming down the steps. 98 00:05:30,281 --> 00:05:32,041 Speaker 2: So by the time I got back to my office, 99 00:05:32,041 --> 00:05:34,241 Speaker 2: I told herybody, we're getting out of here. Let's go. 100 00:05:36,161 --> 00:05:38,241 Speaker 2: We went to that doorway, but by then it was 101 00:05:38,281 --> 00:05:41,881 Speaker 2: so crowded you couldn't get in the staircase. But since 102 00:05:41,921 --> 00:05:45,641 Speaker 2: I knew it that was stairwell C stairwell B, I 103 00:05:45,721 --> 00:05:47,201 Speaker 2: knew it was in the center of the building, so 104 00:05:47,241 --> 00:05:50,361 Speaker 2: I ran to stairwell B. There was like nobody in there. 105 00:05:50,841 --> 00:05:53,281 Speaker 2: So by the time I got back, though we had 106 00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:56,561 Speaker 2: sixty people working with us, they were about thirty left. 107 00:05:57,281 --> 00:05:59,801 Speaker 2: The other thirty had squeezed into the staircase. I said 108 00:05:59,961 --> 00:06:02,721 Speaker 2: come on, come with me. There's an empty staircase. And 109 00:06:02,721 --> 00:06:08,001 Speaker 2: then we proceeded down in stairwell B. It started to 110 00:06:08,001 --> 00:06:08,880 Speaker 2: get crowded, though. 111 00:06:09,241 --> 00:06:12,520 Speaker 1: You know by this time Tom is panic stations going 112 00:06:12,841 --> 00:06:15,361 Speaker 1: like dramatically or He's all still kind of like what's 113 00:06:15,401 --> 00:06:15,841 Speaker 1: going on. 114 00:06:16,641 --> 00:06:20,921 Speaker 2: There's no panic. There was never a panic for when 115 00:06:20,921 --> 00:06:23,841 Speaker 2: the plane hit again. You know, ignorance is bliss. We 116 00:06:23,961 --> 00:06:28,281 Speaker 2: had no idea what was going on upstairs. It was 117 00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:30,121 Speaker 2: sort of like being out for a walk with a 118 00:06:30,121 --> 00:06:33,481 Speaker 2: lot of people. Everyone was very courteous coming down the steps. 119 00:06:33,481 --> 00:06:36,681 Speaker 2: It was everybody was helping each other. There was no 120 00:06:36,801 --> 00:06:40,041 Speaker 2: smoke in the stairwells because after the nineteen ninety three attack, 121 00:06:40,761 --> 00:06:44,361 Speaker 2: the stairwells were reconfigured and air was pumped into them. 122 00:06:44,561 --> 00:06:48,361 Speaker 2: The lighting was changed. There were fluorescent strips, so all 123 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:51,521 Speaker 2: the lights were on. Everybody was just walking down, helping 124 00:06:51,521 --> 00:06:54,561 Speaker 2: each other. We got down into the twenties and then 125 00:06:54,601 --> 00:06:59,121 Speaker 2: they stopped us. There were some firefighters coming up, so 126 00:06:59,201 --> 00:07:01,400 Speaker 2: we had to go single file on the steps on 127 00:07:01,440 --> 00:07:05,361 Speaker 2: the right side. They were carrying some of them seventy 128 00:07:05,440 --> 00:07:10,041 Speaker 2: pounds of equipment. They estimated it took about a minute 129 00:07:10,041 --> 00:07:14,481 Speaker 2: to walk one floor, and they were going up ninety 130 00:07:14,481 --> 00:07:16,361 Speaker 2: two floors, so it was gonna take them about an 131 00:07:16,401 --> 00:07:19,441 Speaker 2: hour and a half to walk up there. And that 132 00:07:19,641 --> 00:07:22,281 Speaker 2: was even before the start to even put out the fire, 133 00:07:22,881 --> 00:07:25,641 Speaker 2: which at that time they believe they can do. Yeah, 134 00:07:26,521 --> 00:07:28,761 Speaker 2: we didn't know also on the way down that the 135 00:07:28,801 --> 00:07:31,681 Speaker 2: South Tower had been hit. We were in the staircase 136 00:07:32,521 --> 00:07:35,401 Speaker 2: with all the noise in the footsteps and people talking. 137 00:07:35,481 --> 00:07:40,001 Speaker 2: We really didn't, you know. Notice I didn't find out 138 00:07:40,121 --> 00:07:45,481 Speaker 2: till much later the day anyway, But they stopped us. 139 00:07:45,481 --> 00:07:47,641 Speaker 2: The fire department came up. We were passing up some 140 00:07:47,681 --> 00:07:50,961 Speaker 2: of their equipment. Some of us were breaking into the 141 00:07:51,041 --> 00:07:53,321 Speaker 2: vending machines, taking out some of the bottles of water 142 00:07:53,401 --> 00:07:56,961 Speaker 2: and juice and giving it to the firefighters. I remember 143 00:07:56,961 --> 00:07:58,641 Speaker 2: I took a bottle of water I poured over a 144 00:07:58,641 --> 00:08:01,041 Speaker 2: firefighter's head. He was sitting sweating, and to which he 145 00:08:01,121 --> 00:08:03,881 Speaker 2: yelled at me, you know, I'm kidding. You know you're 146 00:08:03,881 --> 00:08:06,401 Speaker 2: trying to drown me. I'm not. You know, what are 147 00:08:06,401 --> 00:08:08,321 Speaker 2: you doing? Go ahead, just get out, just get out, 148 00:08:08,321 --> 00:08:11,121 Speaker 2: they kept saying. And we got down to the teens 149 00:08:11,161 --> 00:08:13,561 Speaker 2: at that point, and then they stopped us again. But 150 00:08:13,601 --> 00:08:19,561 Speaker 2: they started bringing down people from upstairs that were burnt horrible, like, yeah, 151 00:08:19,681 --> 00:08:22,921 Speaker 2: they weren't even blinking. They just came down. There wasn't 152 00:08:22,921 --> 00:08:26,241 Speaker 2: a sound and it got very quiet. I could see 153 00:08:26,241 --> 00:08:29,041 Speaker 2: one lady she must have had a cross on her chest. 154 00:08:29,041 --> 00:08:31,761 Speaker 2: It was the indentation of it, the metal burnt into 155 00:08:31,761 --> 00:08:35,201 Speaker 2: her chest. Some of the people the skin was peel back, 156 00:08:36,121 --> 00:08:38,521 Speaker 2: and I think at that point we started to realize, 157 00:08:38,601 --> 00:08:42,801 Speaker 2: you know, something a little more important, bigger was going 158 00:08:42,841 --> 00:08:45,881 Speaker 2: on than we knew upstairs. And once they got them 159 00:08:46,001 --> 00:08:49,761 Speaker 2: passed us, it was like, all right, let's start, get 160 00:08:49,761 --> 00:08:50,721 Speaker 2: a move on a little faster.