9/11's Impact: Bridgewater Resident Watches Towers Burn
A Martinsville volunteer firefighter, and former New York City firefighter, was in Jersey City when the planes hit.
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A call for all boats to respond to Manhattan and remove marooned people, and a report of people in the water prompted us to get life rings, ladders and a rescue cradle ready to deploy.
Courtesy of Jim Murray
Photos (24)
Photos
Editor's Note: Jim Murray, of Bridgewater, is a retired New York City firefighter, and currently a member of the Martinsville Volunteer Fire Company. He was in Jersey City on 9/11 and saw the planes hit the Twin Towers. Murray took pictures of the towers and of the chaos in New York City that day, and, here, shares some of those photos. And in his own words, he gives a brief description of where he was that day, and what each of the photos mean. As a disclaimer, these photos are fairly graphic in nature, depicting the events of that day.
Sept. 11 found me in a unique position, I was retired from FDNY, an active member of Martinsville Volunteer Fire Co. and an engineer on an Army Corps of Engineers work boat, HAYWARD.
We were, that morning, taking on diesel fuel and planning a day of repair work on the boat. A man passed and said, "That's a big fire,"
I looked towards Jersey City and didn’t see anything. I then looked at Manhattan and saw the first tower burning.
Shortly thereafter the second plane hit, and we realized this was an attack.
—Jim Murray, Bridgewater resident
*Leading up to Sept. 11, Bridgewater Patch will examine 9/11's impact on the community and how lives have changed, and reflect on those who died in the attacks 10 years ago.
Thursday—The Martinsville Volunteer Fire Co. talks about it brought water to rescue dogs at ground zero.
Friday—The police department discusses how its training has changed since Sept. 11.
Saturday—County residents speak about how Sept. 11 changed their lives.
Sunday—We cover local and county Sept. 11 memorials.
In case you missed it:
Thursday—We looked at a photo that we thought was representative of the feelings of Americans today.
Friday—We remembered those residents who died in the attacks.
Saturday—We presented photos of the Twin Towers taken by residents.
Sunday—Former Bridgewater resident John Kazan talked about what it was like in New York City on Sept. 11.
Monday—Bridgewater-Raritan High School seniors spoke about what they remember of Sept. 11, when they were only in second grade.
Tuesday—The school district discussed how it teaches Sept. 11 to seventh through 12th graders.
