I was working for a bar owner at 44th St. & 9th Ave. He had the news on both TVs. And people started streaming in as large buildings were closed all over town. One guy I knew perished. Another, made it out of the twin towers alive, and walked uptown. Another woman was late for work: she got to the ground zero area in time to see the second plane fly into the second tower, turned around, and caught what was probably the last subway uptown out of that area.
Here’s what I remember about that day:
Shortly before 9 a.m. EDT, I went into the hardware store to buy some paper towels for the sister bar. The store owner, who knew me from similar errands in the past, said, “Did you hear? A plane just flew into the World Trade Center.”
I gaped at him; said something like, “You’re kidding.” It didn’t register, at first: I mean, small planes do fly into big buildings on occasion but…
He said, “No, it’s on the radio,” and turned up the volume.