Posted by Jim Fitzgerald (165.247.13.205) on September 19, 2001 at 12:30:24:
Hope for WTC Survivors Dwindling
By JIM FITZGERALD, Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK (AP) - Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (news - web sites) said Tuesday that
there was little chance of finding anyone alive in the smoldering wreckage of the
World Trade Center as the city paused to remember the thousands feared dead.
``We don't have any substantial amount of hope we can offer anyone that we will find
anyone alive,'' Giuliani said. ``We have to prepare people for that overwhelming
reality.''
There were 218 confirmed dead and 5,422 missing Tuesday morning. Only five
survivors have been found, none since Wednesday. Search crews recovered 17
bodies overnight.
The mayor's somber message came a few hours after people across the stricken city
paused at 8:48 a.m., the exact moment when the first jetliner crashed into the trade
center one week earlier.
``When you keep silent these two minutes, it seems like a really long time. I'm
thinking of people who were looking for their loved ones,'' said Nancy Pelaez, an
administrative assistant on her way to work. She paused and wiped away tears.
In suburban White Plains, a grand jury has convened to review evidence and issue subpoenas related to the trade
center attack, a source familiar with the investigation said on condition of anonymity.
At ground zero, firefighters in heavily gloved hands continued to sift through sand-like grit and hauled away steel
beams. There are no plans to stop looking, and some rescue workers said they hadn't thought about the anniversary
moment in advance.
``Somebody said it's been about a week, so we paused to think about it,'' said tired-looking Lloyd Crago, a
Youngwood, Pa., firefighter who worked the overnight shift.
``We keep going. We know what we have to do,'' said Sgt. Mike McGarry of the Port Authority Police emergency
services unit.
There was concern over the fires smoldering near a stockpile of Freon stored beneath the towers, but Environmental
Protection Agency (news - web sites) spokeswoman Tina Kreisher said no leaks had been detected. No hazardous
substances had been found in the air except some dust with slightly elevated asbestos levels, the EPA said.
After a morning of gridlock and spotty train service Monday, street and subway traffic was better Tuesday, smoothed
somewhat by fewer commuters thanks to the Jewish new year holiday.
The New York Stock Exchange (news - web sites) opened with a modest rally following the Dow's 684 point plunge
Monday.
Despite the challenges in the financial district, Arthur Stern saw the flood of workers returning to the area as a
positive sign.
``The fact that all these people are here proves what a safe haven this country is,'' Stern said.
Uptown, Rick Hales, 56, a Queens salesman, took the morning off and stood alone in front of NBC studios in
Rockefeller Center. He said that at 8:48 a.m., ``I will be hoping that this world will be a better place.''
Just across the East River from the WTC site, Empire State Building worker Callie French prayed the rescue workers
would find some of her missing friends or the firefighters from her neighborhood.
``I'm so grateful to be alive,'' she said after her moment of silence. ``I have a feeling in my gut that everything will be
OK. There's hope.''
Still, Red Cross volunteers distributed fliers telling survivors of the attacks to expect feelings of fear, sadness, anger
and even guilt.
``Whenever possible, remember that you are still free and that there is still beauty in the world,'' the flier read. ``It's
OK to smile.''
And people did smile - at one another and at the armed police and National Guardsmen patrolling the streets. But
there was rage, too.
``There's so many things to think,'' said Leroy Batson, 58, a shipping clerk from Brooklyn, who paused on the steps
of St. Patrick's Cathedral.
``I'll be honest, I'm pretty angry,'' Batson said. ``There's too many evil things to think. I was thinking of revenge. I'm
sorry but that's the human in me.''