Wassersportszene New York

Commodore Fortenbaugh vom Manhattan Yacht Club - MYC
berichtet von der Attacke auf das WTC
am 11. September 2001
Übersicht New York

Tuesday, September, 18, 2001, 9 a.m.

Dear Members,
This is my first communication to all club members since the attack on the World Trade center. I apologize for not being able to communicate sooner. My computer and all records were at the club or in my apartment and inaccessible.

When the first plane hit, I was outside near the corner of South End and Liberty Streets after dropping my kids off to school.
I ran to my apartment, got my wife and went to pick up my first child at nursery school. We were on the esplanade near Steamers Landing when the second plane flew overhead and hit. I took both my wife and child across the river by powerboat and then came back to dock at Pier 25. From there, I went down the bikeway to PS 89 to pick up my second son. We then motored back across the harbor to Jersey City.

What we saw, while very traumatic, was only a fraction of what other people experienced. We were out of the area before the buildings collapsed. When I think of those with loved ones who are missing and the families of the brave rescue workers who rushed in, my heart stops.

While I was unable to communicate, many members worked together to create an email network for club members. Principally among these were Stephen Yip and Jean Yves Noblet who helped knit people together and spread communication. Thank you and thank you to all of the other members who helped.

Yesterday, I was able to return to Battery Park City to inspect the club and retrieve my computer. What I saw was numbing. Driving down the Westside Highway, I passed rows of refrigerator trucks. There were huge piles of relief supplies under tents. I checked in at Pier 40 with a friend and we were driven down to Battery Park City by truck. Two relief workers were assigned as escorts and then we proceeded to North Cove after passing several security check points.

The plaza in front of the World Financial center was filled with emergency workers moving in every direction.
The scale of the operation was monumental. Electricians were laying miles of cable. Huge generators trucks were running. Mountains of plywood and lumber stood by ready. Carpenters were hammering, sawing and building. Armed soldiers stood guard. And everywhere you looked, there were exhausted firemen.
The buildings facing the Trade centers were severely damaged. A corner facade of the American Express building was broken off. The Winter Garden looked perfect from the water, but you could see through the glass that the framing facing the Trade centers was twisted and destroyed. Up the street, the Deutsche Bank building had much of its front carved away. Windows were out everywhere facing the Trade center. Fires were still burning and smoke rising into the air. The scale of the damage is monumental.

The relief operation is a vast undertaking. Thousands of people are working around the clock. There are facilities to offer food and drink and there are people to provide support. Although I was there for the attack and have seen pictures since, I was not prepared for the enormity of what is happening. Unless you are there, it is near impossible to comprehend.
I was able to walk down the club docks were are still covered in debris. Most of the other areas have already been cleared to facilitate the rescue work. The debris is more than 2 inches thick in many places. It consists of fine dust which is pulverized concrete and wall board. The rain caused the dust to harden. Mixed into the dust are thousands of papers reminding us of the humanity. There are business cards, receipts, a box for pens, notes and stationary. I saw a family picture, torn in half at some point before it happened to land on our docks.
While at the dock, I put second spring lines on all the boats in case any broke before the area is re-opened. We also retied several bows lines which had snapped. The boats themselves appear in fairly good condition apart from a few damaged spots where they banged. But the clean up operation will be huge.
The floating clubhouse is in bad shape. On the morning of the attack I had left the door open. The inside was now covered by thick dust. Everything, the computers, fax, phones, electrical equipment, engines and ice maker were covered with thick soot. Even the dock boxes were filled with soot. There was nothing more to do at the club at this time and so we departed.

As I was leaving Battery Park City, I walked by a bench. There were a group of four firefighters. Three were sitting down with their coats open and heavy boots peeled down. They were looking straight ahead blankly. The fourth was lying down fast asleep. They were covered in soot and dust. They were on break from digging at ground zero.

In one of the most beautiful areas in the foremost city of the world, beauty, devastation, hope, determination and despair whirl together in a surreal dance.
The humanity of this terrible attack and the steely resolve of the people to fight back make me stop. I have never been more proud to be a New Yorker. When the next plane flies in, I want to be there to say, "Stop." When the city rebuilds, I want to be there to carry bricks and mortar. And when our losses are known, I want to be there holding hands. At this stage, we do not expect the club to reopen this season except in a symbolic way. We must proceed one day at a time for a while.

Not all of our members will get this note. And for those who do not, pray.
As soon as time allows, the website will be updated. The club will also establish a temporary telephone. In the meantime, I ask for your patience. It is important to carry on. It is essential to carry on - to fight back. But without being there in person, you can not imagine the scope of what has happened and what needs to be done. The most important thing each member can do right now is contribute patience and help take care of those members who are suffering loss.

There will be many opportunities in the weeks and months ahead to contribute, to help rebuild and to show the determination of our city and our way of life.

The future can not come soon enough. But today, we all must hold hands and walk together through this valley of dust, rubble, sorrow and humanity. God bless you all.

- Michael W. Fortenbaugh - Commodore - Manhattan Yacht Club
Tel: 212-786-3323
www.myc.org
www.sailmanhattan.com
. Impressum