At the moment the first plane struck the building, I was standing near my desk on the 65th floor of Tower 2 when the when I heard a loud thump and felt a very strong jolt. The floor beneath me seemed to move about 4 feet to the south, then four feet to the north, and after 3 or 4 oscillations, came to rest. Although it seemed to be four feet, it could have been four inches. (I was later told by my Supervisor, who sat near a window along the south wall, that, as the building moved, he was looking down into the Plaza and was sure that we would immediately topple over.)
Then I went to the stairwell which was calm, orderly, and free of smoke. As we progressed we could smell jet fuel and I made the assumption that a News helicopter had hit the building. (Later on, after further thought, I realized that a helicopter would not have caused such an impact on the building, but the idea of a large airliner striking the building was simply not an acceptable explanation.) A number of injured people asked to go ahead and we stepped aside to let them pass. I recall one woman holding the side of her rib cage and there seemed to be blood on her hand. A man had a number of injuries and looked like he had been knocked over and tumbled in debris.
At a lower floor, maybe 20, we were asked to keep to the right so firemen could go up. Many of them did, carrying heavy equipment, Air-packs, and long coils of hoses. Some had fire hooks or other equipment. We may have been among the last to see these brave men. I suspect that few, if any them survived the later collapse.
I reached the street in 45 or 50 minutes and looking back at the 2 towers could not understand why both were on fire. I walked up to the Canal Street Subway but found that no trains were running & then continued north. When I was nearly a mile away from the site, I heard everyone in the street gasp and I turned around to see my building collapse. Actually, my eyes fooled me. I was sure only the top floors had toppled off to the east, into the plaza. When I saw it later on TV, I was amazed to find that my perception was completely wrong.
I went to Penn Station but it was closed. By this time, hearing reports on car radios, etc., I was beginning to learn what had happened. I walked over the 59th Street Bridge and on Long Island, found the subway in operation; was able to get out to the LIRR in Jamaica and took a train to my home station.
I was very lucky to get out quickly, and did not see some of the terrible sights to which many others were subjected. Aside from the wonderful pain in my legs from going down 65 floors and then walking 6 miles, I did not feel traumatized since I was never aware of the danger until I was far from the scene.
