On September 11th, I was at a line department Deputy Directors monthly breakfast meeting at Fine and Shapiro with Alan Reiss and Victoria Cross Kelly when Tower One was hit...chaos ensued and we immediately rushed to our respective facilities. As acting Director of Tunnels, Bridges and Terminals that day (Ken Philmus, Director was in Boston out of the Port District) I made my way to the Holland Tunnel, where Facility Manager Robert Durango arranged for staff to pick me up. Chief Operating Officer Ernesto Butcher joined us there and arranged for us to set up an emergency operation at JSTC. PATH staff were outstanding in making room for us.
So that is a bit of background about my little story which begins with a phone call to PAPD main desk at JSTC from Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr, publisher of The New York Times regarding the closure of the Holland Tunnel. The desk officer did not recognize the name, but I did as soon as he was transferred to me. After catching my breath, I had a lengthy conversation with him about his request to allow NYT and WSJ newspaper delivery trucks to pass through the Holland Tunnel early morning on Sept.12 after the papers had been printed around midnight. He had been talking with MTA Bridges & Tunnels as well.
Only emergency vehicles were allowed to use any of our crossings, so my initial answer was no. But upon further discussion with him he enlightened me to the notion that having your newspaper at your door, in your mailbox (not email) or at your favorite newsstand, like every other morning, but especially on the 12th, to report the history of that fateful day was compelling. Ernesto, PAPD, Bob Durando and I had to quickly put together the protocols for the box trucks and driver ID's, many of them plain white rentals and not driven by NYT or WSJ employees. Documentation for vehicle registration, drivers licenses and background checks had to be completed and provided in hours. We then cleared this with all the other law enforcement agencies including the FBI. And then, of course, every truck had to be inspected by Holland Tunnel and PAPD staff before entering and leaving (don't remember if we charged them a toll!)...but, newspapers were delivered on time.
