OT: September 11, 2001... Where were you?

[samosa4u]

I was a high school student and ended up getting pretty sick the night before. I told my mother that I wasn't going to school the following morning and not to bother me. The next morning however, I was shaken pretty aggressively by her and nearly had a heart attack. I was just about to ask her what the hell she was doing, but the expression on her face told me that something was really wrong. All she said was "come into the living room and look at the TV." I quickly got up and when I stood in front of the TV, I saw that CNN was on. I just couldn't believe what I was watching - looked like a scene from an action movie. We were all so stunned. Very sad day.

[Jobu]

I was here:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Co...!4d-71.4075413

in the middle of the Peruvian Amazon studying spider monkeys. The site is in the middle of nowhere - you fly into Lima, fly into Cusco in the mountains, fly down to the lowlands and land at a grass airstrip cut out of the forest. There is a small village, Boca Manu, there with mainly thatched-roof houses. From there, it was a 13-hr boat ride up a river with only indigenous people save for one tourist camp fairly near the settlement. Arrive at the right spot on the river and then it was a 2-km walk to get to the field station on a small oxbow lake.

The only communication we had was an incredibly expensive satellite phone that sometimes worked and a cb radio to talk to the people in the small village. The night of the 11th people were eating dinner when the radio crackled, telling us that planes flew into the buildings at 9 am that morning, both buildings collapsed, and that each building might hold 50,000 people. That was it, no more info.

The girlfriend of one of the guys I was with worked a couple blocks away. We spent the rest of the night on the satellite phone trying to reach someone's family or friends but that took forever because all of the phone lines were busy and the satellite phone didn't work well anyway. Finally someone got through to someone in (I think) California and gave them instructions to check on the people in New York. It wasn't until the next night that we were able to get an update (everyone was ok).

That night and the next day were surreal - out in the middle of the jungle, sleeping in a tent, following monkeys around and not having any idea how many people were lost, whether there were additional attacks, who was responsible, etc. We got a bit of news over the phone (I think calls were like $5 or $7 per minute) but not much.

A few weeks later a new group of researchers came in and brought some magazines and newspapers and they were all read cover to cover by everyone there (Americans, Colombians, Peruvians, Brits, and Canadians). I remember sitting there and staring for minutes at a fuzzy picture of someone who had appeared to have jumped head first from one of the towers (Newsweek perhaps).

On my trip home in November, long hair, worn out field clothes and boots, worn backpack, I was searched more times than seemed possible and still remember the soldiers with machine guns in the airport in Texas as I entered the US. It was also surreal returning home - I was moved by what had happened but still short on details and had neither really lived through it nor been subjected to constant coverage, discussion, and worry. I got home to find that everyone had changed and that I was on the outside a bit.

Sorry for the long post, I thought some might like to read this.

[90feetaway]

I worked by Church Street then. I got out of the E train and saw the buildings on fire. To be honest, I thought it was just a regular fire as I didn't know what happened so I went to work. They told us to leave work at 9:15 and I got out but no one could tell us where to go, so I ended up walking uptown on Broadway (good thing). Everyone on the street had the news on their radios and the news kept getting worse. Met my wife and mom in midtown and walked home to Queens over 59 St bridge. They couldn't get a hold of me until I was close by and thought the worst.

[Rich Klein]

I was driving my father home from grocery shopping when I heard Harry Harrison (or perhaps Dandy Dan Daniel) or some combo announce a plane had hit the WTC. First thought was did a pilot mess up like in 1945 with the Empire State Building. Soon enough the 2nd plane hit and then we all realized it was a bit more than an accident.

Since I was Hertz gold at the time, called the Newark office and informed them I was driving that car back to Dallas. Took me 3 days to drive down. You see, I was supposed to fly out of Newark Airport at 7 PM that night because I was also American gold and knew I could make the flight after walking around the Tues night Parsippany show.

From what I heard, they actually held the show that night as a distraction and several dealers did fairly well. As for me, I got back to Dallas at 5 PM Thursday and got through that weekend. No one cared that I took a 3 hour lunch (legit) to return my rental car. I never want to go through a day like that again. EVER

[baseball tourist]

I was managing a 50-storey tower in downtown Toronto and their were rumours and speculation that many major markets may be targeted. We had tenants closing up offices and other quite panicked that their companies wanted them to remain open for business. I was too busy to watch much TV that day but didn't sleep that night or much for few nights after. Will never forget.

[vintagerookies51]

I was 4. So I'm not sure

[Leon]

Originally Posted by vintagerookies51

I was 4. So I'm not sure

Makes me feel even older than I am. I was at work and we went into a conference room where there was a TV in time to see the second catastrophe happen. Even though only watched on tv, it is something you never forget.