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a story of life inside the wtc on 9-11 |
I checked my watch, it was 8:30 am. Dam i still had about an hour before my meeting.I knew it would only take 3 minutes for the elevator to reach the 96th floor of the World Trade Tower. I stoped and grabed me a newspaper, checking up on the Yankees. As the clerk gave me my change I looked at my watch again. The baseball bat hands of the watch pointed at 8:40. Dam it to hell why did I have to have this meeting today. I could have been at home enjoying my daughter Maddy's 1st birthday. I ran to the elevator just before the doors closed. i would take it up to the 60th floor say hi to my college buddy Nick from NYU, then i would use the stiars and walk up the other 23 floors.M doctor told me i was out of shape.As the elevator starting ascending up the tall tower the numbers on the eletronic sign got higher 23;24;25;26. Then I heard the loudest bang i could here. inside the eleavtor it went black as the midnight sky,no numbers on the wall no buttons lit up, no movement.Just great a power outage. Or so i thought the face of my watch gave me the only light inside that eleavtor indicating it was 8:46 AM. Loud shouts of panic outside the doors of the elevator told me i was in between floors, so i banged on them as hard as i could. I guess no one heard me because i spent what felt like days in that small dark metal box. After 10 minutes passed of banging on the doors i strated to notice they were getting hot. What the fuck was that smell. Was there a gas leak somewhere? I grabed my cell phone out of my breast pocket of my Armani coat, and dialed the infomation desk downstairs.Busy at this time of day! not even half the tower was filled yet! I kept dailing untill i got that voice that said all lines are jammed. I'm traped in this hell hole with no way out and everyone outside these doors are panicing.I end the call looking at the time on my phone 9:00am on the dot,then it flashes to my screen saver. My beautiful wife Liz hold Maddy in her arms. It was taking the day she was born at the hospital. Out of nowhere i feel a 2nd rumble.This one was strong,but not as strong as the 1st one that got me stuck. O thank god this thing is moving again i thought. My watch said 9:03. I been in this eleavtor for a fucking half hour. my meeting was in a half hour. Looks like i will have to catch up on NIck later.9:04;9:05;9:06 I thought this thing was moving! I am about to fall asleep when i hear a sudden chirping sound coming from my breast pocket. shocked to see it's my wife number i quickly answer it. "Baby where are you? Are you ok? What's going on over there?" Not normally the way my wife talks to me on the phone. i could feel the shock fear and panic in her voice. "Liz you're scaring me is everything ok there? Did something happen to Maddy? I'm stuck in this eleavtor.".That sent Liz into tears. She never told me how much she loved me like that in the 3 and a halfs years we been married.The next words out of her mouth scared the life out of me.I heard Liz's terrifiying voice on the other end whispering inbetween sobs of sorrow " the towers have been attacked". At that second every moment in my life came flashing before me. Somehow those words transported me out of reality and into a war zone. I started coughing and gaging hard untill my morning breakfast came up onto the floor. How am i going to get out of this? Will i ever see Liz and Maddy again? Is this how i'm going to die? America under attack? To many questions and no answer to any of them. Just 2 hours ago i was looking at Liz and kissed Maddy goodbye telling them i loved them both and i would see them tonight.If there was only some way i could have known. i spent every moment i could with Liz on the phone.Every second was hard for me to keep from crying.At any moment I could die in here and i would never hear her voice again.never watch my little princess grow up. never walking her down the alisle and giving her off at her wedding. Things i looked forward to now just a dream.No one can imagine what death will be like but i was living it, and i wasnt with the love of my life. I looked at my watch again 9:45. the beeping sound of my cell phone telling me i had a low battery was the sicking sound warning me of how close i was to never hearing my wife talk again." liz do you remember that place we went to for our hoenymoon down in mexico?" i asked trying not to show any fear to Liz. Of course she remembered.it was the most beautiful sunset we shared together. "well when i get out of here all 3 of us will go down there again".A sound pause on the other line i looked at the phone thinking it died but the screen showed it was 9:58AM. her voice softly came alive when she said " baby you mean the 4 of us? I was going to tell you when i got home but we are going to have another baby".It was 9:59am. I stood over the crib in the baby's room.Just me and him.Maddy was already asleep in her bed.Liz came in wearing the same dress she wore on a few days after i was traped in that eleavtor. but this time she looked different. she was happy this time. She walked over to the crib and looked down onto our baby boy. I wraped my arm around her but all she felt was a cold chill.then she bent down kissing the baby and whispered softly to him" you look just like your dad. i only wish he was here to see you." |