[[On one of the coldest days of the year, a passenger jet carrying more than 150 people was forced to make a water landing in the frigid Hudson River. US Airways flight 1549, with 150 passengers and five crew members, crashed into waters just west of Manhattan after taking off from LaGuardia Airport en route to Charlotte, N.C. "I was driving down 72nd Street [on the west side of Manhattan], and I saw the plane falling, falling," one eyewitness, Spiro Ketahs, told TIME. When it hit the Hudson, he said, the water gushed like a volcano. Said Adam Weiner, an employee at MTV who saw the accident from his midtown Manhattan office building: "I was sitting in a conference room on the 39th floor, facing the window. All of a sudden I see a plane gliding into a river. At first I didn't realize what I was seeing. Then spray went up, and you could tell it was a jetliner. Then a couple seconds after, the door blew off and you could see the raft blow up." from Time News 1-17-09]]
It’s always a bit unnerving when news of any plane crashing comes on the news. The people of my home town are no different, maybe a bit more worried. We’re not a large city so it’s easy to know someone, or someone’s relative, who might have been on the plane.
I listen for the chatter but there is none. The stores are quiet as everyone waits to hear the news. At the local diner(s) all I hear are clanking silverware or glassware. Everyone is listening to hear something and I listen too. But I hate silence. I could wait no longer.
“Hello, where are you?” I asked my friend, via a private line.
“Driving as hard as I can go to New York; yes, that’s my team, same team… again.”
For a moment we traveled back in time to September 13, 2001, when the silence was too deafening again. At that time she was driving as hard as she could go to New York. Her team in World Trade Center Tower 1 had decided not to go back inside after given an “all clear” signal from Tower operators on September 11, 2001
Well wishes to the Bank of America Team and my hard driving friend! See you at the airport again.
It’s always a bit unnerving when news of any plane crashing comes on the news. The people of my home town are no different, maybe a bit more worried. We’re not a large city so it’s easy to know someone, or someone’s relative, who might have been on the plane.
I listen for the chatter but there is none. The stores are quiet as everyone waits to hear the news. At the local diner(s) all I hear are clanking silverware or glassware. Everyone is listening to hear something and I listen too. But I hate silence. I could wait no longer.
“Hello, where are you?” I asked my friend, via a private line.
“Driving as hard as I can go to New York; yes, that’s my team, same team… again.”
For a moment we traveled back in time to September 13, 2001, when the silence was too deafening again. At that time she was driving as hard as she could go to New York. Her team in World Trade Center Tower 1 had decided not to go back inside after given an “all clear” signal from Tower operators on September 11, 2001
Well wishes to the Bank of America Team and my hard driving friend! See you at the airport again.
Saw this on the news and thought about you, but was also so thankful that everyone seems to have gotten out ok. Good, despite the odds. Shows that when things look the worst they possibly can be that there is still a chance they will work out OK. Wishing your friend well, xx
ReplyDelete["Shows that when things look the worst they possibly can be that there is still a chance they will work out" -a jewel shining through]
ReplyDeleteI'm going to hang onto that!
thanks.x
We watched this remarkable story unfold on the news over here in Britain. A story of calmess, courage and composure.
ReplyDeleteHuge credit to the pilot and crew. Wow!
Quite the harrowing experience that thankfully has had a good ending for all concerned.
Hudson River Runway.
Hudson River Runway, well said.
ReplyDeleteThank you. In peace.dc