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I was sitting at my desk. Yes I had a desk (and a job) back then. I was writing a story that seemed so important. And so unimportant a moment later. Michael Jackson had a concert in NYC on September 10th. His big 30th Anniversary at Madison Square Garden. Whitney Houston showed up to do a duet. She was scary skinny. All bones and drugs. She looked sweaty and sick. But it’s not like I was sitting there thinking that she and Michael would die so young.
And it’s not like I was sitting there thinking thousands were about to die.
I glanced up at TV monitor. I always had mine on NY TV. Maybe out of habit. My TV career really began there.
The words: a small plane has crashed into the World Trade Center were crawling across the screen. I jumped up and ran over to my producer. We started flipping channels WNYW, NBC, CNN.
There was a chopper shot of the Twin Towers. We saw smoke.
Then more video of the Towers.
Then a second plane. Not a small plane but a jet.
We didn’t know this then but passengers on the plane knew. They knew they were too low. They knew the plane was out of control. Some were throwing up. Some were calling home.
The plane was going 590 miles an hour.
We watched it head for the South Tower.
I was screaming before it hit.
I had never seen something so deliberate.
So horrifying.
I called my husband. It was early. He didn’t pick up right away. Part of my message was recorded on our answering machine. I was screaming into the phone. I was telling (yelling) that we were under attack. Telling him the world had changed in an instant. Sometime later I heard the message. I didn’t recognize my own voice.
I was thinking about all my friends in NY. And about my son. He was supposed to start preschool that day.
Then we went on TV.
And I started to fear for my friends in DC. The Pentagon was hit. The White House was evacuated.
We watched the South Tower go down. Hit second but collapsed first. 110 floors turned into smoke and dust. Sickening.
Twenty eight minutes later we saw it fall again. Or at least we thought we did. Steve Edwards and I both thought the producers were showing a replay of the South Tower going down with the word LIVE on the video. We told the producers take the word LIVE off the screen. They said IT IS LIVE. The North Tower was crumbling. It was incomprehensible. Two Towers reduced to smoke and rubble.
Thankfully we never said this on the air but Steve and I both thought 20,000 people could have died.
2,752 people did die.
My son didn’t go to preschool. I freaked out a bit and kept him home for a few more months.
I was born and raised in NY.
I celebrated my 30th birthday (that’s right im over 30) at Windows on the World. The restaurant was on the 107 th floor of the North Tower. I will never forget that night. We had a limo and the driver asked me if I was on TV. I said yes. He said “You’re Roz Abrams.” Roz was an anchor at WABC. Roz is a lot taller than me. And she’s black. But I said “yes I’m Roz. So nice to meet you.” And I think he believed me too.
That was the last time I was in the Twin Towers.
One of my good friends had an appointment at the WTC that day. She was lucky enough to be running late.
Michael Jackson had an appointment at the WTC that day. He was supposed to return a 2 million dollar watch he wore during his concert on September 10th. Michael slept in. He was also lucky to be running late.
We never did air the Whitney and Michael jackson story. It was too late to care about any of that gossip shit…
I watched with you that day. I appreciatd your sensitivity and care as I wept for hours with you all. I’ll never forget.
I will never forget that morning either because my son was also supposed to begin school that day. It was an exciting time for us. His first day of school, I had just bought a brand new car the day before and suddenly none of that was so exciting anymore. Even now this day is still very sad and I guess it will always be that way.
I remember as well. My husband and I had gone out to San Diego ( whales vaginia) to see Norv Turner kick Dan Synder’s ass- which he did and classy Nancy had a lovely victory party in her beautiful Del Mar home and my husband who had a meeting with Verizon in the towers on the 12th ( happens to be our anniversary-like today) said “we don’t have to take the red eye honey – we can stay one more day.
But we all know red heads are witches and I said No I have a weird feeling we need to go home.
and if we hadnt my 12 y old daughter and my 9 yr old son would have been alone on that day.
All out other freinds were stuck in CA, while my husband and I watched in horror – then it was so quiet n planes and then F!14′s – we heard them ( we live very close to Dullas airport)
I remember Dottie calling me on a break to check and I said “yeah- do u want to hear the F14′s – not sure if I should be comforted or not. Several of out neighnors work in the Pentagon, many of my co workers – one is gone.
I was so glad and grateful that we were both home with my children..
My son is very insightful and he wrote that year ( I still have it of course) about himself the following:
I am Constantine, funny nice
I like my family and my freinds and playing with my dog Buster
I fear that what happnened on 911 will happen again ..
When I saw that at back to school night it had a profound effect on me- I thought wow how changed my childrens lived were …and how changed we all were but how lucky we were as well..
As always my girl Dorothy was a class act..xxoxoxoxo
Hello,
I am not writing about what you have written, however it is very heartfelt and insightful, I am writing to thank you and David for something. Earlier today I came across a disturbing website (about pictures posted…mug shots). I searched for more info about the companies that provide the info. I decided that a call to your husband would be necessary. I really did not expect to hear anything (although I was hoping to). To my surprise your husband did call within the hour! I believe that the websites that are doing the deed need to be stopped. Your husband said that he would look into my complaint. For that I want to thank both you and David. Between your writing and his undercover work you both are doing things that I very much appreciate!
I hope that you had a great anniversary and again thank you!
Ann
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My husband is a stock broker, and back in 2001 I always woke to the blaring sound of CNBC on TV. We always fought over what to watch in the mornings as I prefer Good Day LA. Since CNBC is business related he usually won, and I’d switch to Good Day LA when he left for the office. I did not need to be at work till 9:00, but I was up early getting myself ready before getting our 10 month old ready for Grandma’s daycare that day. We saw everything live. The plane hit, the towers crumble, the confused looks on the faces of the reporters in our TV. My husband knew he didn’t need to go to the office – his business was crumbling before his eyes. At 7AM PST, we switched over to you and Steve (and back and forth with many news channels throughoug the day.) Though you tried to look calm and professional; you could see it in your face – the face every Mother wore that day. Life as we knew it had changed, and all we wanted to do was hold our children a little tighter that day. I’ve always related to you so well because we are mothers of children similar in age. I don’t think I could have handled it any differently, because you handled it with such grace.