With their Eyes

Act One

Overture

Eddie Kalletta, sophomore

I saw this
huge plane it was.
It looked much bigger than the first one,
it just,
it looked like one of those jets, you know, in the movies,
you know, Air Force One or something, one of those big jets.
It was one of those and it just hits --
it hit the building right there.

Katherine Fletcher, English teacher

I noticed it enough to say to my class
what was that
sort of casually
I wasnt scared or alarmed I just sort of said what
what was that
and someone said
thunder
and I was like no
its not thunder
it must have been a truck
it was like a sound of a truck like hitting something on a street or
you know how sometimes youll hear something like that.

Hudson Williams-Eynon, freshman

We all went to Art.
My art class is on the tenth floor
turned
facing North so
we couldnt see anything but
everyone was looking out
the windows
so
the teacher was like
"You know,
this might sound stupid and everything
but I still want you guys to draw.
You can tell your kids that when
the World Trade Center was
yknow
attacked
you guys were drawing
contour drawings."

J. C. Lopez, School Safety Agent

I got this weird transmission
the strangest transmission in my life
that a plane hit the World Trade Center
and I ran into that computer room to see.
I havent gotten back into that office.
The recollection of what I saw is framed in that window,
like if I had to draw you a picture I would
have to draw the window frame as well
Im a little apprehensive,
just looking at these banners I get a little choked up.
So I -- I fear going into that office
I might lose my composure.
But, its been long enough that maybe I could go into that office
and take it in
but I, I --
you know in a way I dont feel ready, I dont.

Renée Levine, Building Coordinator

I was in Mr. Satins office
on the second floor.
I went to the window
and I looked down -- not out
not up
I looked down.
I saw people running across the courtyard of . . .
of I.S.89.
I thought a truck had crashed
into the playground.
I heard someone yell outside
and then I went onto the bridge
and I saw
I saw
the
gash in the side of the building
the flames coming out
I went back inside
and I put on the T.V.
and they were saying that it was a small commuter plane that had crashed
into the building.
The first reaction was ohh> its not terrorism.
Then the second one hit
and I knew.

Katie Berringer, freshman

We didnt know what was going on
so when we see this like
psychopathic lady running down the hallway
like I need to call my mother, I need to call my mother!
and were like
What is wrong with HER?
and we didnt know what was going on so we were like
laughing at her.
But then we heard that thing on the speakers
but we still thought it was like
tiny and they were telling us out of respect
like when that guy died and everyone had a moment of silence.
We thought it was something like that --
but I saw my friend and he was telling me
like about all these things he was seeing out the windows
and I was like holy shit
this is big.

Jennifer Suri, Assistant Principal, Social Studies

There were students who came into my office to use the phone
to touch base with their parents
to see if they were okay . . .
and there were actually many of them crowded into my room
and the electricity went out
momentarily and the lights started flickering and everyone screamed
and dropped to the floor, frightened.
And I just tried to comfort them.

Tony Qian, sophomore

Once we came out we saw the big smoke...
I dunno,
when people started talking about this was a...
terrorist attack
I was completely,
uh,
I just couldnt accept that.
I dunno.
I was just coming into myself that
this wasn't the case, that
this was probably just an accident.
Yeah, well, when people say that, um,
when you're...
sometimes your rationality fails you during a time of crisis.
I never believed that until that day.
I just couldn't think correctly.
So, what can I say?
But,
but, uh,
the soot and the dust was so dense we couldnt see anything.
So,
I didnt know that both were,
you know,
down, already.

Anonymous Male Custodian

When it happened
I watched the buildings fall,
I was in my house.
My wife was on the phone.
She woke me up.
I work nights.
I was sleeping when it was happening.
She woke me up and told me to turn on the TV.
And ya know
I saw the planes hit
ahh
like unbelievable
ya know what I mean.
It was like
I was just sayin' it must be a dream, it must be a dream.

Matt Polazzo, Social Studies teacher

Well, I biked into school that morning
uh, but
it didn't happen while I was on my bike, I was in the, um
the Social Studies office in room 302 and
I was
fiddling around on the computer and
I dont think I heard the first impact
and if I did, I didn't realize it
but I walked out into the
hallway, and I
noticed immediately that all the kids were looking strange in this room
and I think it was Ms. Kellys room
in room 304.
They were all
clustered up against the windows and
you know that's the en --
that's the big symbol that something's going down --
if you see someone else looking.
Roman,
one of my
homeroom kids, was running out.
He said something like
"Oh shit, Polazzo, they
blew up the World Trade Center again!"