This was sent to me from a friend in Texas................
Friends and Family...
I wanted to send SOMETHING out just to let you know how things are... You
can get better updates of the whole situation through CNN or CBS (most
complete network coverage, in my opinion), but here's the Brooklyn and
Bethel and Ean slant on the whole thing.
First... Bethel. An announcement from the Branch Committee was read
yesterday at noon that was information regarding various measures taken by
Bethel. Increased security (due to the thousands of people coming into
Brooklyn from the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges), the potential power
outages, and ongoing telephone disruptions. This announcement also stated
that all members of the Bethel Family should remain on Bethel premises for
Tuesday evening. Local shuttle service in Brooklyn and inter-complex
shuttle service was suspended yesterday. (Many Brooklyn Bethelites had
left
for Patterson and Wallkill early in the morning, but were required to stay
overnight. They've since come back this morning.)
Another announcement was read this morning expressing that efforts
regarding
our brothers and sisters were being organized by the circuit overseers in
NYC and as further information becomes available it will be passed on.
Morning Worship comments by Brother Losch this morning emphasized the text
on taking the mind of Christ, and how that includes the pity we feel for
all
those that lost their lives, and not taking nationalistic feelings in the
current situation.
Two more announcements were read at lunch today. The first stated,
generally, that as soon as the disaster started, the Governing Body
informed
every branch office of the ongoing attack in NYC. The actions were
indicative of the hatred in the world and Satan's grip. Many brothers and
sisters that work in that area had not gone to work by the time of the
attack. Others narrowly escaped before the collapse of the buildings.
Many
of these were assisted by Bethel, fed, taken care of, and many spent the
night here.
The second announcement was for the Brooklyn Bethel family that again
discouraged automobile transportation to congregation meetings.
My paraphasing of the above announcements is just that, paraphrasing.
360 Furman was closed yesterday afternoon. The smoke and debris dust went
directly over 360 Furman and apparently clogged up the ventilation systems.
Everyone was back to work this morning, however.
Everybody's asking whether any brothers or sisters were killed or injured.
Personally, I know of none. Everyone I know, that I'm aware works downtown
is safe. There have been no official numbers or names released by the
authorities in NYC.
It was a very traumatic experience for many. My workmates father worked on
the 86th floor of the North Tower when the first plane crashed. He was on
the street by the time the second plane crashed into the South Tower.
Another brother that stayed at Bethel overnight was on the 81st floor of
the
North Tower. The 80th Floor was the topmost floor damaged by the crash.
He
also safely made it out without injury. There were other brothers at
Bethel
that were working in upper floor in the WTC that safely evacuated. This is
encouraging, because it appears that many were able to flee the building
before the collapse.
A friend of mine came works five blocks from the WTC and came to Bethel as
soon as he could via the Brooklyn Bridge. He was pretty shaken. Power
went
out to his building, they eventually headed to the street via the
stairwell.
There was panic on the streets. They evacuated all the buildings downtown
at once, so the streets were just packed with people. As the buildings
collapsed, there were multiple explosions that sent everybody off in
different directions. Everytime they heard a plane overhead (by this time
there were military patrols) they thought it was going to be another
attack.
He compared it to schools of fish that constantly change directions. Most
of the people on the street thought the white dust from the falling debris
was a biochemical agent. Many were trying to get shelter in other
buildings
instead of heading uptown. Dozens were being crushed by the mass of
people.
Many ran east to the water, but running out of places to run just jumped
into the East River. He saw people being crushed by falling debris but
more
disturbing was the partial body parts (hands, feet) that were all over the
streets.
My perspective... I was on a conference call when someone yelled that the
WTC was smoking. I crossed the hallway to watch what was going on. Most
people felt the explosion, but I didn't notice the first one. Because I
work in the Electronics Shop, we had access to CNN and the networks... We
alternated between the view out the window and the news. I definitely felt
the second explosion, which shook the whole building. From the window I
was
looking out of you could see the people jumping from the top floors of the
towers.
It kept getting worse and worse... when the second tower collapsed, the
dust
that was coming toward Brooklyn was so thick you couldn't see the river
from
the 30 Columbia Heights. Once it cleared a little bit, you could see
thousands of people walking along the FDR drive and Fulton Street to the
Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. There was a constant stream of people
coming across the bridges for another four or five hours.
I spent most of the late morning and the afternoon calling and making sure
everyone in my congregation and other friends were ok. Cell phones were
totally out of commission in the morning, but it started getting better by
about 11:30am. Most networked television transmitted over the air went out
with the collapse of the North Tower too. Thankfully, we have satellite
television at Bethel, so our feeds were uninterrupted. Most of the
problems
were in getting out of the city. For you not in the city, anybody in
Manhattan had to basically walk out, which took hours. Once they walked
across a bridge, there was usually public transportation available.
By the end of the day I was surprised to find myself totally exhausted,
drained. I wasn't even in the thick of it, but couldn't believe the
emotional and mental impact. I went home, a few friends came over, we had
some martinis (and KFC! thanks Remy and Nat!), watched the news together,
continued to call friends making sure everyone was ok, and crashed early.
This morning was eerie. As I left home and opened the door to the street,
there was the charred remains of a manila envelope that had drifted over
from WTC. There was blood-stained office paper scattered on the sidewalk
of
Hicks St. There was silence. No sirens. No vehicles. There were
occasional clumps of people talking in hushed tones. Most people were
quiet. Just walking.
Manhattan is still shut down. Most businesses are closed. All businesses
below 14th Street are still evacuated. Most businesses all over Manhattan
are closed. Airports are still closed. Etc. Etc. Everyone is scared to
even estimate the death toll. It may be weeks before even estimates are
released.
Work at Bethel goes on... The Kingdom Hope is kept forward in our minds.
Its clear that this is a major worldwide situation and it's not even close
to being completed. It only takes a few minutes for the world scene to
change irrevocably.
And thank you for your messages and emails of concern... I've attached a
couple pictures that were taken by myself or others here. Other photos on
the ground are at cnn.com or msnbc.com .
love,
-ean
Kind Regards
Teni
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