Donald oral history interview conducted by Melodie Guerrera, August 2, 2010

About

Donald worked as a heavy equipment mechanic for the NYC Department of Transportation. He could see the towers from his workplace in Queens. He witnessed the second plane strike the WTC and the collapse of both towers. Donald answered the department's call for volunteers to go to the site the next day. No one knew what to do. They just started "unearthing" what they could from the debris, searching for injured victims. It soon became clear that it was a recovery, rather than a rescue mission. The scene was one of "wreckage and carnage." All that was left of the giant towers was cement dust and iron. He saw many people searching for their loved ones, as well as people from out of state who came to help, many of whom were turned away for security reasons. The operation became more organized, with the area divided into four sectors, each with a huge crane and a caravan of trucks removing debris. A ball field was set up for repair of the big equipment since it was imperative to remove them from the site so work could continue. They were given the best equipment. Donald worked twelve-hour shifts, dividing his time between repairs at the ball field and those at the pile. Repairs such as flat tires were performed onsite, while larger repairs would be done at the field. At times, the huge pieces of steel beams placed on the flatbed trucks would crash through their floorboards and rip the brake lines. Donald would have to come onsite, fix the brakes and remove the truck to the yard…

Archive

Library of Congress, in Library of Congress

Licence or status

Rights statement at the Library of Congress, as the Library of Congress states it.

Credit

Library of Congress

Language

English

Country

United States

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