elizabeth

It's unspeakable. If you're a New York City poster please reply to this message when you can so we know you're OK.

Ess

I posted the message below on the Europe board. I'm sure that the NYC fodorites right now are trying to cope with this day's atrocity. My prayers go out to them and everyone affected by this.

We're OK. I both live and work in Long Island so I'm OK here, except in a terrible state of shock, as is everyone else in the world.

Everyone where I work knows someone, or someone who knows someone, who worked in or near the WTC. So many people commute each day to the financial district from Long Island and the boroughs of NYC. We are all dazed. This act touches everyone's lives.

My boyfriend, Bill, works on Water Street a few blocks from the WTC. People in his office were watching through their very windows as it happened. They are all OK in his building, and glad to be counted among the living, but naturally very shocked and frightened. The obvious intended effect. Right now Bill's just trying to find a way to get home. He and a friend are going to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to catch the Long Island railroad east from the Brooklyn Station. There's limited service, though, so who knows when he'll actually get here. But they are lucky.

My heart truly goes out to all of those and their families who are missing, hurt and/or killed in this appalling act. I will be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.

xxx

This was an attack against freedom and democracy. My prayers to the families of the victims at the WTC, the Pentagon and the 4 airplanes that were hijacked. God Bless us all.

Howard

We are okay.....well, not really. We feel stressed and pissed off! It's all so surreal in one respect, and that I'll wake up from a bad dream soon. I think about the coincidence that I took my first photos ever of the WTC twin towers just 2 1/2 weeks ago! Now, they're historical photos!
I also wonder whether how many people I know were in the two towers when they collapsed. I try to think of whom I know, and my mind runs blank.
And I realize how relative things in life are. My wife and I are scheduled to fly to Italy on September 21. The fact that we might not go didn't seem very important this morning!

Howard

PS: I wouldn't have even thought of checking out the forum today if another Fodorite hadn't thoughtfully emailed me to make sure we were okay and that I should post it.

steve

the problem for us here in manhattan is that we all know people who worked there and around there and it will take days to know. the scene outside is surreal. this morning i headed downtown when the wtc collapsed to check up on my family in the village. there were thousands of people, some with black faces from smoke, heading uptown. i ran into a banker who works down there. she just hugged me and started crying, telling me that she saw people jumping out of the wtc. in the village people just stood and stared up where we used to be able to see the towers. this is mostly shock, and anger out there. i think i'm going to take my family and head out late tonight because of the disease that i'm afraid will occur from the thousands of dead buried out there. my heart is broken for them.

Philip

Thanks to all of you for all your kind thoughts. We here in Manhattan are pulling together to get through this. We appreciate your prayers and thoughts for us.

kalena

To Ess, Steve, Phillip, Howard, and all the NYC contributors to this forum that
we have gotten to know. We are all reaching out to others today, wherever we may be. It is hard to comprehend the level of stress you must be experiencing, being so close to this tragedy. We hold you up in our thoughts and prayers.

I plan to get my children early today. We will talk as a family. I hope Leone will write in. Aloha, and peace.

Sal

Howard,
So glad to hear you're okay. What a tragedy for the entire world.

I think we will be canceling our Nov. trip to NY with our teen daughters. The girls are too nervous about traveling. I hope that we will be able to reschedule soon and take advantage of the excellent advise you gave me in preparation for this trip.

Sal

Of course I should add that I'm glad to hear from the rest of the NY Fodorites as well. Our thoughts are with you.

pam

The parents started arriving at the school where I work at 10 a.m. This was my first clue that something had happened.
The day was spent calming children and trying to keep to the routines as much as possible.
Two of the teachers in my building left as their husbands worked in those buildings. One husband is fine. The other husband hasn't been heard from but the phones are all down here.
My good friend worked on the 78th floor of building 1. He didn't go in today as
he wasn't feeling well.
I hope there are more guardian angels watching over the others.
The people of New York will come through this.
No one can imagine what the total casualties will be from this tragedy.
Those buildings were like huge cities...I once got lost inside one of them.
We all need to say a little prayer tonight and hope that there is an answer to putting an end to this world wide terrorism.
I would like to personally thank Liz for being so thoughtful as to inquire about us NYC Fodorites.
Your compassion and concern mean alot to us. Thank You.

Bettina

I don't live in NYC but I have two very close relatives who work there and were both in the city today. They both made it home safely, terribly shaken but otherwise okay. I also have a cousin who was at a meeting across the road from the Pentagon. I didn't know he was there until this evening and by then he was home, also terribly shaken.
All America and perhaps the entire world,is in a state of outrage and shock over this and we must all pray to whichever diety we favor to put an end to this horrible terrorism.

Marlena

I live in NYC and have to tell you that the hospitals are so overloaded they cannot even take walk-ins to donate blood. Afraid the rest of the country is going to have to help out and truck/fly (when the airports open again) the blood in from elsewhere. PLEASE give blood if you can, it's needed.

Ellen

I am here, but broken to bits. I have looked out my living room window at the twin towers for 10 years, and will now never see the city view the same way again. I can't even describe the feelings as I watched those 2 beautiful, gleaming, structures collapse from my view while I sat paralyzed at my desk. Oh how I love this city-my home all of my life. The sadness overwhelms. So many friends and cousins worked in both buildings. Have not heard from 3 of them. Hoping, hoping, hoping. Lost 3 on Pan Am 103, and cannot do this again. I'm here all alone. My husband works in Brooklyn and leaves at 6:20 AM. He can't get back home tonight. We both feel so utterly, completely helpless..speechless..angry..hurt..but proud to be New Yorkers and WE WILL get through this somehow. God bless all of you.

Jen

I live in Boston, and tried to donate blood today, only to find that there were TOO many people that they couldn't handle everyone.

Help is on the way NYC and DC. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.

CatherineF

Thinking through all possible routes, I'm asking any of you who might have info about Marsh Financial employees located at the WTC. My brother began working their yesterday on the 95th floor. I've not heard from him still, & their emergency hotline does not have his name on their "Safe" roster. If anyone has a general idea of how likely those on these higher floors on the South Tower may have survived, I would so much appreciate it.

Anne

Marlena--

I've already made plans, to donate blood, tomorrow. I'm truly blessed, to have type O-, and am considered a universal donor. Thank you, for reminding others of this most basic, yet so important, need.

My heart, my mind and my prayers are with those affected by these horrid, tragic events. (As a Navy veteran, too, I am especially concerned--as a former hospital corpsman, from Bethesda, MD, I am praying that my former colleages have the fortitude to endure what must be an unimaginable experience. I can only imagine the hell they endured, today--receiving injured victims, from the Pentagon, etc..)

Life, in these United States, shall never be the same. Again, my thoughts and prayers are with all of you, in NY, who have witnessed and been affected by this devastation. God bless you all.

Cathy

My thoughts and prayers are with all of you in NYC- and I was relieved to see postings from many of you. I waited 3 hours to hear news of my cousin who worked at 5 WTC - thank god she is ok yet obviously shaken. She was GM of Borders and of her 250 staff only 4 are unaccounted for at this time(she felt they did a wonderful job evacuating during a stressful situation). Being from Boston we are hearing of many from our area that were on the two terrifying hijacked plane rides- just devastating.
Catherine I am hoping that you hear from your brother soon.
Take Care and God Bless.

elizabeth

Just trying to keep this at the top.

I was supposed to be in NYC today - yesterday my client delayed the meeting til later in the week - my phone has rung off the hook today as people thought I was on my way to NYC.

While I've heard from many friends, my client has already confirmed one loss of life - words cannot describe my grief.

It's be said on other threads - but, as a Canadian, I don't think this is a crime against Americans - it's a crime against humanity. I hope our various nations will work together to stop terrorism of this kind - and my thoughts and best wishes go out to everyone tonight.

Alexis

I just got home a little while ago. We holled up for most of the day at a friends apt. because there was no way out of Manhattan.
A friend of his has a roommate who works in one of the towers who hasn't come home yet and as the hours drag on, the sick feeling grows.
There are thousands of families all over NY and Wash. and this country who must be in such misery right now, I start crying all over again whenever I think of it.
Please pray for the families of the missing, for our Country and for our President too.