Remember September 11, 2001 as documented LIVE on Free Republic

Free Republic ^ | 09/07/06 | NewLand

[ut1992]

9/11 is a day that I will never forget. For me the day started as mundane as any other Tuesday morning. Got to the office at 6:30am so I could put the final touches on my presentations for meetings with Senior Mgmt that were in town that week. I remembering sitting in my office and seeing the sun come up and staring at the Sears Tower that was right across the street from my office.

The meetings started at 8am. Well into our meeting one of our EA's came in and announced "something" was happening in NYC; several of the attendees were from our NYC office.

We asked her to call our A/V folks to see if they could connect our meeting room projector to the news so we could see what was happening. In the meantime, I fired up my laptop Internet so we could listen to the radio. Soon after that were able to watch live TV. We were all sitting in stunned silence.

We also tried calling our NYC office to check their status. We were already getting "circuits busy" signals. We started wondering what we should do; e.g. continue with the meeting or cancel it. By that time we had most of the people on our floor in the conference room with us, so by default our meetings were canceled.

Probably 30-45 minutes into watching the news, another EA came into the conference room to inform us that the Office of the CEO had sent out an emergency email to all offices and employees (ca. 30k) to shut down all US offices immediately. We were all stunned. I thought to myself, "what the he** was going on"; e.g. as with most things that day, this was an extraordinary “order”.

Although our office was "officially" closed most people stayed in the conference room and continued to watch the news. However, rumors started on our local news that there were planes hijacked out of Milwaukee and were heading towards Chicago. Fighter jets started circling Chicago at very low levels. Now we started to get really nervous as the Sears Tower was right across the street.

People started filtering out of the conference room to pack up their gear had head home. I walked back to my office to make a few final calls and pack up my things. I hadn't been in my office for only a few minutes when all the building's alarms went off. It sounded like a "call to battle stations" on a Navy ship. After about 5 seconds either the CFD or CPD (I couldn't make out which dept it was) came onto the intercom and announced in a very authoritative tone to evacuate the building immediately.

I grabbed my things and headed towards the elevators. The lobby was full and so were all of the elevators. I told my remaining team members to head down the stairs.

Fortunately for us we were only on the 17th floor. As we exited the building there was mass pandemonium. The streets were filled with people attempting to get home. Police cars were racing around with sirens blaring. CPD riot vehicles were blocking the streets around the Sears Tower and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

On that day our company lost 12 employees who happened to be in the WTC meeting with clients.

[NewLand]

Oh my goodness. It is incredible how many people were indirectly impacted across the country. Around the world.

Don't you feel like you can remember that day practically by the minute? Certainly in more detail than just about any other day.

I was also in Chicago that day. I remember hearing about the people on the streets (we stayed inside at McCormick Place, also close to Sears Tower) and I definitely remember the fighters. I will complete Part 2 of my story as a reply to my Part 1 earlier in the thread...I'll PING you to it.

Thanks for sharing your story.

[nmh]

Who can forget Ken Cosgrove?

This still haunts me:

Audio:

http://www.nothingtoxic.com/media/1153567378/Chilling_911_Call_From_the_World_Trade_Center

transcript:
Transcript of Kevin Cosgrove's call to 911

Published April 10 2006


A transcript of Kevin Michael Cosgrove's chilling call to 911.

WARNING: Contains explicit language.
9-11: What's the telephone number I can tell FD to push up? What's the telephone number you're calling from?

KC: I can barely see.

9-11: You can barely see?

KC: 4-4-1... .

9-11: 4-4-1... .

KC: 2-6-2-3

9-11: That's on the 105th floor of the Northwest corner, right?

KC: Right.

9-11: At number Two World Trade Center?

KC: Right ... Lady, there's two of us in this office. We're not ready to die, but it's getting bad.

9-11: I understand, sir. We're trying to get all the apparatuses there. I am trying to let them know where you are. Stay on the line

KC: Oh, please hurry.

Fire Department: Let me talk to the caller please ... Let me talk to the caller. Where is he?

9-11: He's on the line.

FD: Let me talk to him ... Where is the fire, sir?

KC: Smoke really bad. 105 Two Tower.

FD: Alright. Sit tight. We'll get to you as soon as we can.

KC: They keep saying that, but the smoke's really bad now.

FD: That's all we can do now.

KC: What floor are you guys up to?

FD: We're getting there. We're getting there.

KC: Doesn't feel like it, man. I got young kids.

FD: I understand that, sir. We're on the way.

9-11: He's on the 105th floor in the Northwest corner.

KC: He hung up on me ... Hello, operator?

9-11: Yes?

KC: Come on, man.

9-11: We have everything we need, sir.

KC: I know you do, but doesn't seem like it ... You got lots of people up here.

9-11: I understand.

KC: I know you got a lot in the building, but we are on the top. Smoke raises, too. We are on the floor. We're in the window. I can barely breathe now. I can't see.

9-11: Okay, just try to hang in there. I'm going to stay with you.

KC: You can say that, you're in an air-conditioned building. What the hell happened?

9-11: Okay. I'm still here ... still trying ... The Fire Department is trying to get to you.

KC: Doesn't feel like it.

9-11: Okay, try to calm down so you can conserve your oxygen, okay? Try to ...

KC: Tell God to blow the wind from the West. It's really bad. It's black. It's arid. Does anyone else wanna chime in here? We're young men. We're not ready to die.

9-11: I understand.

KC: How the hell are you going to get my ass down? I need oxygen.

9-11: They're coming. They're getting you. They have a lot of apparatuses on the scene.

KC: It doesn't feel like it, lady. You get them in from all over. You get 'em in from Jersey. I don't give a shit. Ohio.

9-11: Okay, sir. What's your last name?

KC: Name's Cosgrove. I must have told you about a dozen times already. C.O.S.G.R.O.V.E. My wife thinks I'm alright. I called and said I was leaving the building and that I was fine and then -- bang ... Cherry. Doug Cherry. Doug Cherry's next to me. 105. Whose office? John Ostaru's office?

9-11: That's where he said? That's the office?

KC: We're in John Ostaru's office. O.S.T.A.R.U.

9-11: A.R.U.

KC: Right. That's the office we're in. There are three of us in here.

9-11: Ostaru. Hello?

KC: Hello. We're looking in ... We're overlooking the Financial Center. Three of us. Two broken windows. Oh God. Oh ... (the tower collapses)

http://redeye.chicagotribune.com/ny-usmoustranscript,0,6185625.htmlstory?coll=red-frontheadlines

[NewLand]

[Follow up to post #52...Part 1 of my 9/11 story]

So we arrive at McCormick Place, and I am hustling fast to get to my meeting room on time, which was 8:00 a.m. Central. As I'm walking, I see people standing around a TV monitor mounted up high. I wonder, then think 'oh, it must be an internal broadcast of a speaker here at the convention'. A little further in, I see another larger group watching another monitor. A little further, I see a group of maybe 50+ people watching another one.

Now I'm really curious.

I walk over to the monitor and as I'm about to ask, I see the first tower that was just hit. 'Oh my God" I think...but must be an accident.

Go into the meeting. We're downstairs in McCormick Place, with no view to the outside world. Like being in a cave.

Ninety minutes later, meeting ends and we find out. Two towers hit, plus The Pentagon. Definitely terrorists.

The room explodes...'we must cancel the show'...'we can't'...'what do we tell everyone (100+ people) working in our booth?'...my comment was, "I'm not letting those bastards scare me away"...everyone rushes upstairs because we can't use our cell phones downstairs.

It's total pandemonium upstairs. There is close to 10,000 people waiting to get into the show...rumors are flying...I hear people talking about hijacked planes...no cell phones are working. No calls are going thru.

I think of my wife and kids in St Charles at Grandma's. I'm sure they are safe...but my wife (little rebel) must be worried about me.

I go to call, and see that I have a lot of messages. Call to v-mail goes thru...miracle... First one is from my wife...an FYI about the first tower. Look at a TV if I get a chance. She has no idea it's terrorists at that point. Next message...wife again...crying...second tower...terrorism...she's scared...knows I'm close to Sears Tower..."DON'T TRY TO BE A HERO"...next message, wife again...crying uncontrollably...first tower collapsed...sadness and anger [my wife, little rebel, is one of THE MOST patriotic people I know]...next message, wife again...where are you, please call...we are hearing rumors about The Sears Building...

I end listening and call her at her Mom's...goes thru (again) immediately...Thank You God..."I'm OK...I'm not being a hero...I don't know anything yet...are the girls OK?...my 3 year old is crying because Mom can't stop crying...OK honey, I'll let you know what I'm going to do once I find out what's going on here. Bye. I love you."

[DoctorMichael]

This post deserves a big, huge, gimungous BTTT.

[NewLand]

TOP OF WORLD TRADE CENTER JUST COLLAPSED!

[betsyross1776]

Oh man, and the libs are so worried about civial rights for people at gitmo.What about your civial rights and what your family went thru that day. God Bless you and the family I am so glad your are safe!

[NewLand]

and what your family went thru that day

Thanks for the kind words betsyross...but really, what we went thru was absolutely nothing compared to so many others.

Pray for our country and our President...everyone.

[NewLand]

Video about President Bush...including "The Pitch"

[California74]

That's cool. Where'd you get that? I wish I could put that on my website!

[California74]

There's a video on youtube of that call (link below)- you watch the smoking towers...
WARNING: It's gutwrenching and you will never forget it for as long as you live.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLW0jKKRXMo

[xp38]

I found out about it on a remembrance thread a year or two ago while rereading the threads of that day. All I can think is that so many emotions flood you on such a day that a lot of the details of that day are forgotten but of course other details stand out very clearly. I do remember saying to my love....Hon...on a day like this words fail

[cpforlife.org]

Alarm clock set to news/talk. Woke to the news of the first hit. Jumped in front the TV put a tape in the VHS and while later watched live as the second plane go into tower 2.

I sat in utter silence the rest of the day. I didn't leave the house for more than a few minutes for the next couple days.

I still have those tapes and plan to transfer to DVD soon.

I have a business acquaintance who's relative ran some kind of concession business in or near the towers who made it out early. Another former school mate who practices medicine at Sloan-Kettering (SP?) nearby, was OK.

I was not a freeper yet but a regular lurker and spent much time here. Freepers are the very best.

How anyone could possibly forget is beyond me.

[NewLand]

Just right click on the link I posted...choose 'Save Target As'...then you should be able to download the file to your local drive and then upload to your website.

Let me know if it works.

[KC Burke]

I will give my memories.
I was traveling and doing e-mail in the hotel room. I hadn't turned on the tv as I usually did. When I got ready to leave for my local field office, I flipped on the tv to be stunned by the first video of the second plane.
I watched transfixed.
I called my wife who had been trying to reach her daughter who had left her a worried e-mail. This daughter work in the tallest building in the Washington DC area and had been told to evacuate. I called her and luckily got through to her mobile. She was tied up on the interstate headed to her apartment across from the Pentegon metro station.
While I tried to reassure her she told me she could see the smoke from that area.
I told her what was there from what I saw on the tube.
My wife was overjoyed that I had gotten through. I then went to the office and went on-line to FR.
One of the first things that happened was reading Huck's account of walking across the plaza between the towers just after the first plane hit.
After his post we all became worried as we knew his office was very close by and we didn't here further from him.
We reflected how just days before we had a thread where the importance of bin Laden's appointment to the Taliiban Defense Ministial level for his assasination of the geurilla opposition leader was discussed. Had the Taliban known he was planning this?
Was Huck dead?
What of other freepers in the area?
I wanted a weapon in my possesion, but I had none with me and I was over a thousand miles away.

[NewLand]

How anyone could possibly forget is beyond me.

It's called denial. They don't actually 'forget'...just minimize the reality to the point where it may as well not have happened...in their world.

[ArmstedFragg]

For another remarkable remembrance, I highly recommend this short film.

"Crystal Morning"

http://brain-terminal.com/posts/2006/09/05/crystal-morning

It'll take you right back.

[duckbutt]

You know, I watched that video again and now I can hardly see the screen. After all he has done for New York and for all Americans - - poured out his heart and soul and love for all of us - - how can those New Yorkers (at least the 3 to 1 liberals vs. conservatives that will vote for Hillary) have such disdain for this man? Are their memories so vague? How can they so easily forget?

Lord help us all!

[JellyJam]

9/11/01 was a horrible day, but it was also wonderful for me. Our daughter was born at 3:30 a.m., five hours before the attacks. I was on top of the world ... even through all the tragedy and confusion. It was a roller-coaster of emotions. Hours afterward, I reluctantly sent out a group e-mail to family and friends to announce our baby's arrival into this crazy, mixed-up world ... many of them said they cried when they heard "the best news of the day."

Five years later, she's as beautiful as her mother.

I'll never forget 9/11 ... for two reasons: one wonderful ... one horrific.

[Ax]

I had sold my house in Chatham, MA, and was in the process of moving down to Florida. I had lost my wife earlier that year (cardinal4's mom) and saw no reason to stay in Kennedyville. The movers had packed everything on 9/10 and on the morning of 9/11, they (mostly Russians) were loading the boxes into the van. I was in the basement with the crew chief when Cardinal4 called me and said to get to the TV. I sat on a crate in front of the TV until the house was empty except for me and the TV. The crew chief said he had to get moving, as he was a Lieutenant in the RI NG and had been summoned to the armory. After they left, I stayed umbilically connected to my Walkman until I could get near a TV.

My cousin lives in Manhattan and was a big shot with Dean Witter, who had several floors in one of the towers. I was frantically trying to locate Kevin for almost 48 hours. I finally got his cell on 9/13. He had left DW a few weeks earlier and was working out of his Park Avenue apartment and was quite safe.

"Worst Day in Living Memory" fails adequately to sum up our feelings.