W000298
Friday, November 09, 2001 4:55 PM
Affected Victim
I am (was) a resident in North Battery Park City at the time of the attacks on the World Trade Center. I have a southwest facing apartment which overlooked the World Trade Center towers. I was home during the time of the attacks as I had been severed by my employer. In fact, that morning I was on the phone with a business contact discussing possible job opportunity when I heard a loud explosion. I originally believe the noise to be thunder but it was a clear beautiful day and then I heard the blood curdling screams from the street.
I looked out my window and saw a gaping hole in the North tower. I put CNN on the television which indicated that a plane had crashed into the tower. As I was watching the most saddening events of my life unfold, I watched another plane crash into the south tower. I felt relatively fine for my personal safety and remained in my apartment until the south tower collapsed. As I watched the dust and smoke billow up my street, I realized that my safety was in serious jeopardy. Who knew how a tower would fall? I was under the very real concern that the North tower (the one closest to my house by only five blocks) may tumble sideways and not implode. I hurriedly grabbed my cell phone and wallet and ran down 26 stories. Approximately five minutes walk up West Street, I turned around and watched the North tower collapse and the dust and debris envelope my building.
The following two months have been extremely trying on so many dimensions. As so many people in the city, I am thankful that I was able to walk away however I have had to face my mortality. So many of us could have been there. Two years ago, I worked on the 100th floor of the north tower (almost all those people from Marsh McLennan are missing and believed to be dead), six months ago I walked through the towers everyday to my office on 65 Broad street at 8:45am, as a consultant I flew weekly. Only luck and circumstance saved my life.
The tangible effects are easier to quantify. I was homeless for a month. And then, after returning to my home, I realized that the area was unliveable. I believe that there are very real health concerns from living near Ground Zero. While health professionals are doing their best to determine the health effects, the real answer is that nobody knows. The real concern is that the health problems will not present themselves for twenty years. I do not want to be a statistic in twenty years with some type of cancer or respiratory disease which the government will be apologizing for with money too little too late. The best solution is to move out of the area which has cost me an exorbitant amount of money. The management company has charged me a one month penalty to break my lease, I had to pay a broker to find an apartment in a weeks time and I had to pay movers to move my items. The total cost is approximating $10,000.
Furthermore, the events of the 11th have adversely effected the economy. I was poised to start working with this new company who now is no longer hiring. I have been looking for employment since the attacks with no luck. While the economy was definitely slowing down, there were positive signs prior to the 11th which are no longer there. I am faced with the very real prospect that I will not find employment in the next 6 months (and that is with an undergraduate degree in Economics and an MBA from Columbia University). If that is the case, I will not be able to afford to stay in the city and will have to relocate again.
As I indicated before, I am thankful that I was able to walk away from the attacks on the 11th, I am most certainly a victim of the events. There is no compensation for the psychological innocence lost, for the fact that I don't sleep at night, for the fact that I jump everytime I hear a loud explosion or sirens, however, the monetary costs associated can be redressed.
Thank you
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