From the archives: Across LI, shock, disbelief, anger, fear in the aftermath of attacks

This story was originally published in Newsday on September 12, 2001

As soon as Brian Schwagerl left the crumbling chaos of Manhattan behind him, the first place he sought as he stepped off the train was the solace of the massive St. Agnes Cathedral in Rockville Centre. There, Schwagerl, an attorney with the Hearst Corp. in Manhattan and a parishioner at St. Agnes, joined about a dozen or so others, heads bowed in quiet prayer on a day that had been unlike any other they have ever known.

"It's very sad," he said. "I prayed for the president, that he may be guided correctly. I prayed for the souls of the dead and their families, may they be comforted. I prayed for peace to come quickly."

From the churches to the streets to the strip malls stretching from the East End to the western edge of Nassau County where the Twin Towers had been visible up until yesterday morning, Long Islanders shook in fear, anger and disbelief as the nightmarish terrorist attack unfolded in the city with which they are so closely linked. "This is like the Pearl Harbor bombing in World War II. I'm scared," said Mark Haff, 45, of Babylon. "We need to bomb whatever country it was. Go after them. Totally, totally get rid of the country."

Everyone agreed, no matter how angry, how sad nor how incredulous they were, yesterday would be a day they would never forget. "Everybody's going to know this day in history," said Angela Blando of Copiague. "It's like people say where were you when JFK was shot. It's gonna be like where were you on Sept. 11."

In the aftermath, Long Islanders flooded local blood banks to donate, commuters rushed home, schools ordered lockdowns on campuses across both counties, churches scheduled prayer services, government buildings tightened security, colleges canceled classes, area airports shut down and portions of the Long Island Expressway were closed. But amid the chaos, Long Islanders reached out any way they could.

Both counties sent emergency personnel to Manhattan and local hospitals offered assistance as well. By late yesterday afternoon, hundreds of people snaked outside the Long Island Blood Service's center in Melville. A similar scene played out at the center on Veterans Memorial Highway in Ronkonkoma, which had an estimated four-hour wait.

Churches across Long Island offered special evening prayer services. St. Agnes held an evening Mass that drew thousands and St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Manhasset remained opened throughout the night. "This is one of the vilest days of villainy in modern history," said Rabbi Robert Androphy, president of the Long Island Board of Rabbis.

By early afternoon, evacuees began arriving from the city on the high-speed ferry at Glen Cove. Some were bandaged. Many were visibly shaken. The ties worn by many businessmen were askew. Michael McGorry, 41, of Upper Brookville, a broker on the 84th floor of the south tower, hobbled off the ferry toward his wife, Annie. Both wept as they embraced. "I can't believe this," she said through sobs. His wife fielded frantic calls from the wives of other brokers. "A lot of his guys haven't been found." As passengers were taken off the ferry - some in wheelchairs, some on gurneys, one shouted: "Bomb the Palestinians" - a sentiment not uncommon yesterday on Long Island, even though no one yet knew who was responsible for the attacks. Others, like Lenny Lucarelli, 59, of Lindenhurst, called for arrests and boycotts. "This way you take control of what's in this country, and then take it from there."

As residents were trying to make sense of their anger and grief, volunteers and officials from Nassau and Suffolk counties were offering help, sending emergency equipment and crews to the city. Every hospital on Long Island was on alert yesterday, preparing to care for victims of the twin towers devastation. Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow was on alert and was expecting to receive six to eight burn victims from the attack, spokeswoman Shelley Lotenberg said. Three people walked into the hospital after returning from Manhattan, suffering emotional rather than physical wounds, Lotenberg said. "They were the walking wounded, I guess you would say," she said.

Meanwhile, in school districts across Long Island, educators rushed to break the news to children and reassure them. District officials closed campuses across both counties, not allowing anyone but parents onto school grounds. Lynn Ventura, a ninth-grade student at Hempstead High School, was in gym class about 1 p.m. when teachers evacuated the school after a false bomb threat telling them to leave for the day, setting off a chaotic situation with students rushing to leave. The students didn't know why and wondered if it was related to the planes crashing on the World Trade Center, news that teachers broke to them early in the morning. "Everybody was talking about it," Ventura said. "It's so sad ... It's almost like there's gonna be a war." As of late yesterday afternoon, at least one district, Bay Shore, had canceled classes today, though County Executive Robert Gaffney asked Suffolk schools to remain open, in order to maintain normalcy.

County facilities expect to remain open today, he said. "The extent that we can get past the point of chaos ... their victory is less," he said of the terrorists. Several colleges canceled classes yesterday and set up counseling services for students and staff. Anna Tverskoy, 22, of Port Jefferson, a student at SUNY Stony Brook, found out about the attack on campus. "I just got there at about 9:15 and as I was walking into class people told me. They told me planes had crashed into the towers," she said. "I had to hear it twice before I believed it. Everybody said when they heard it on the radio they had to switch to another station because they thought it was a joke."