It’s a cold, grey morning in New York, but inside the high fence surrounding Ground Zero, the mood is nothing short of festive.
“This is like Christmas,” said Brian Schwentner, an inspector who has worked at the construction site since December. “I was ecstatic they got him.”
Since he arrived at 7 a.m., shouts of ‘U-S-A! U-S-A!” have echoed through the towering cranes and American flags have appeared on half-finished buildings, he said. Plans are already under way for post-work celebrations. “Drinks will definitely be poured today,” said the Alabama native.
The news that Osama bin Laden is dead prompted spontaneous gatherings after midnight in New York’s Times Square but amid the streams of commuters arriving in lower Manhattan Monday morning, there were some who had yet to hear.
Stopping on the steps of St. Peter’s Church, Herminia Bernardo asked a passerby taking a photo about the reason for the unusual crowds and gaggle of television trucks.
Told that the U.S. had killed Mr. bin Laden, her reaction was swift. “Thank god!” the 62-year old exclaimed. “I’m so happy.”
Pausing on her way to work, she remembered the day almost 10 years ago as she headed to her office in the second tower of the World Trade Center. Travelling from New Jersey to Manhattan, her train stopped in the tunnel – the first to turn back after the attacks began.
Dustyn Broening, a construction worker at Ground Zero and a veteran of the Iraq war, said that to mark the occasion, his boss was telling people to wrap up what they were doing then take the day off.
“You can compare this to the end of World War II,” he said. “We’re still fighting the war on terror, but we’ve taken out the main symbol.”
Even people who pass by Ground Zero on a daily basis felt the need to stop on Monday, grabbing their phones or cameras to take photos of the half-finished site.
“It means something, especially today,” said Christine Yip as she pulled out a hot pink smart phone. A decade ago, Ms. Yip was a 17-year-old administrative aide at a hospital blocks away from the World Trade Center, and remembers the bloody scene in the emergency room that day.
She stayed up until 2 in the morning with her boyfriend gathering details of Mr. bin Laden’s killing by U.S. special forces. “Is it evil for me to ask whether we could just capture him and torture him?” she said with a small laugh. “A shot in the head – that’s a quick death.”
Joy mixed with reflection at the informal memorials around Ground Zero, where fresh candles flickered and some people stood quietly, wiping away tears. On the fence surrounding St. Paul’s Chapel, two people had affixed some artificial pink flowers with a note. “Thank you U.S. Military!” it read, and was signed simply “Holly & Henry.”
“This is like Christmas,” said Brian Schwentner, an inspector who has worked at the construction site since December. “I was ecstatic they got him.”
Since he arrived at 7 a.m., shouts of ‘U-S-A! U-S-A!” have echoed through the towering cranes and American flags have appeared on half-finished buildings, he said. Plans are already under way for post-work celebrations. “Drinks will definitely be poured today,” said the Alabama native.
The news that Osama bin Laden is dead prompted spontaneous gatherings after midnight in New York’s Times Square but amid the streams of commuters arriving in lower Manhattan Monday morning, there were some who had yet to hear.
Stopping on the steps of St. Peter’s Church, Herminia Bernardo asked a passerby taking a photo about the reason for the unusual crowds and gaggle of television trucks.
Told that the U.S. had killed Mr. bin Laden, her reaction was swift. “Thank god!” the 62-year old exclaimed. “I’m so happy.”
Pausing on her way to work, she remembered the day almost 10 years ago as she headed to her office in the second tower of the World Trade Center. Travelling from New Jersey to Manhattan, her train stopped in the tunnel – the first to turn back after the attacks began.
Dustyn Broening, a construction worker at Ground Zero and a veteran of the Iraq war, said that to mark the occasion, his boss was telling people to wrap up what they were doing then take the day off.
“You can compare this to the end of World War II,” he said. “We’re still fighting the war on terror, but we’ve taken out the main symbol.”
Even people who pass by Ground Zero on a daily basis felt the need to stop on Monday, grabbing their phones or cameras to take photos of the half-finished site.
“It means something, especially today,” said Christine Yip as she pulled out a hot pink smart phone. A decade ago, Ms. Yip was a 17-year-old administrative aide at a hospital blocks away from the World Trade Center, and remembers the bloody scene in the emergency room that day.
She stayed up until 2 in the morning with her boyfriend gathering details of Mr. bin Laden’s killing by U.S. special forces. “Is it evil for me to ask whether we could just capture him and torture him?” she said with a small laugh. “A shot in the head – that’s a quick death.”
