Robert Edwin Jr. oral history interview conducted by Julie Broihier, September 30, 2010

About

Robert works as a detective with the NYPD in Astoria, Queens. He has worked in the police force for 16 1/2 years. On 9/11/2001, his wife called to say the Twin Towers had been hit. Robert got a second call from work to report in. He recalls that the Long Island Expressway was shut down, and only cops, firemen, and emergency personnel were allowed to use the Expressway. Robert said, "The five boroughs were basically locked down." He states, "Everybody had to be in uniform, no matter what your rank was." He remembers going from his precinct to Mt. Sinai Hospital to interview anybody who was hit by debris. Robert remembers, "It was 10 or 11'o'clock at night, (and) Manhattan was aglow." He worked day and night shifts from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. on 9/12/2010 at the Staten Island landfill. He saw four stories of the World Trade Center impacted and recalls "there was smoke everywhere." Robert said, "Manhattan looked like Beirut, a war zone." He recalls that an alarm system was setup in case any beams fell at the WTC site. Robert remembers that day the clothes he wore were the ones he came home with. Robert remembers that he started wearing Tyvek suits and masks once he started working in the landfill. In the landfill, he worked through sifting the debris from Ground Zero and recalls finding watches and a mangled police shield. At home, he recalls that he kept things bottled up and recalls that there was difficulty keeping work and home boundaries. Robert worked at the landfill and…

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Language

English

Country

United States

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