Ferries deliver aid during, after tragedy at WTC Transport victims then support rescue effort

Ferries deliver aid during, after tragedy at WTC
Transport victims then support rescue effort

JERRY WOLKOWITZ In Highlands, volunteers load supplies onto a SeaStreak ferry for delivery to the World Trade Center disaster area in lower Manhattan.

Passengers had just disembarked from the 7:55 a.m. New York-bound SeaStreak New York ferry when the unthinkable happened last week. Not long after, a water transport company stepped up to assume a role in America’s worst disaster that the staff of the ferry service could never have anticipated.

"We were running a normal schedule Tuesday morning (Sept. 11), and one of our boats had pulled into New York Harbor when the first plane hit," recounted Joanne Conroy, Seastreak America Inc. marketing manager.

"The 7:55 a.m. departure had just dropped people on Wall Street at around 8:40 a.m.," Conroy said. "The 360-passenger SeaStreak New York radioed that a plane had hit a building in the World Trade Center and continued on its way to the ferry landing at 34th Street."

Conroy said the ferry was on the way back to Wall Street when the crew saw a second plane hit the second 110-story tower of the WTC complex.

CHRIS KELLY Volunteers unload cases of water from a Budweiser delivery truck at the pier in the Highlands. The water was later sent to lower Manhattan via the SeaStreak Ferry.

"That’s when we realized what was going on and the need to take all our operating vessels to Pier 1l and start transporting passengers back home," Conroy explained.

"People were pouring onto Pier 11," she continued, "and we loaded as many as we could. New York Harbor was closed, a state of emergency had been declared and our boats were running as fast as they could to get people out."

In a similar scenario, a New York Fast Ferry vessel was unloading commuters at Pier 11 in New York when the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center began.

John Koenig, president of New York Fast Ferry Services Inc., said the crew continued on to midtown Manhattan, but by then the second attack had occurred and some commuters decided not to disembark.

According to Koenig, once the staff realized the proportions of the disaster, New York Fast Ferry’s fleet of two high-speed catamarans was called into service.

"We refueled, and from then on, we ran both boats back and forth taking people back. We kept going until around midnight," he said.

According to Conroy, the first group of returning commuters were the least affected.

"They just turned around and came back," she said. "People were coming off the boat thanking us for bringing them back."

Founded 2¹/2 years ago, Seastreak America Inc. is a subsidiary of U.K.-based Sea Container Ltd. The Atlantic Highlands-based ferry service has a fleet of four high-speed catamarans that carry area commuters from ferry landings on Shore Drive in Highlands and the Atlantic Highlands municipal marina to Pier 11 at the foot of Wall Street in New York’s financial district and a ferry landing at east 34th Street in midtown.

On a typical weekday, SeaStreak vessels make 20 departures to Manhattan, carrying thousands of commuters from northeastern Monmouth County towns like Rumson, Fair Haven, Little Silver, Red Bank, Highlands, Atlantic Highlands and Middletown.

"I don’t think in the beginning stages anybody had any idea of the magnitude of what was happening or that water-borne transport was going to be the only way out," Conroy said.

"Once we all realized what was going on and that the situation required a centralized operation, we closed off the Atlantic Highlands port and brought everything back here.

"At that point we had police, emergency medical service and fire personnel from almost every town in northern Monmouth County," she said.

Shamrock Stagecoach buses took returning commuters back to their cars parked in the Atlantic Highlands lot or to the bus station.

"There were people who got on the boat just to get away from the city," recalled Conroy. "We had people get off the ferry and ask, ‘Where am I?’ They didn’t even know they were in New Jersey."

The exodus went on throughout the day, testing the resources of SeaStreak’s staff and crews who made their last departure from New York at 11:15 p.m.

By that time, SeaStreak’s catamarans had carried in excess of 3,000 people away from the scene of the devastation. All were transported free of charge, but Conroy deflects any praise for the company’s action.

"You can’t equate a cost to helping in this situation; that’s not our focus. We’re in transportation; that’s what we do. We’re so lucky to have had the resources. What else would we have done?" she asked.

Conroy herself stayed at the landing helping to load emergency medical technicians, firemen and police officers onto every vessel heading to New York.

Within hours, Monmouth County Emergency Management had set up headquarters at SeaStreak’s Highlands site, where police, fire and emergency medical personnel converged.

Medical triage for the injured returning from New York was set up on a SeaStreak barge. An eye wash station and a decontamination operation were set up in the parking lot.

"We assumed people would be injured, but we did not know what kind of injuries they would have," Conroy noted, adding, "Before noon it was full scale.

"All hands were there," said Conroy of the transport company’s office staff of 10 and the 25 crew members called in to aid in the rescue effort. "We’ve been all hands since it happened," she said on Thursday.

"When it first happened, the idea was just to get victims out. We basically saw people who were suffering from smoke inhalation, eyes burning, covered with dust and needing decontamination.

"We were absolutely ready," she remarked. "When they left Pier 11, our boats radioed and let us know the extent of the injuries."

In the midst of the frenzied activity, no one took the time to tune in to media reports.

"We were so focused on what we were doing. We saw no images. No TV, no radio. We had no visual conception of what was taking place. We got that after the event. It was almost a positive thing at the time," she explained.

On the day after the disaster, SeaStreak’s role shifted.

"Wednesday morning was more of a support effort. We got information that they were in desperate need of men’s clothing for rescuers who had to be decontaminated. Conroy turned to a local foundation.

"We turned to Dennis McGinnis of Jason’s Dreams (for Kids Inc.) and his business became a drop-off point," she said, "and together we put the word out on local radio stations."

The response from businesses and the community was immediate and overwhelming.

On Wednesday, SeaStreak dedicated the high-speed monohull SeaStreak Brooklyn and the high-speed catamaran SeaStreak Liberty to ferrying rescue personnel and supplies. With SeaStreak staffer Kim Newton coordinating the effort at the Highlands landing, more than 100 volunteers formed human chains, helping to load supplies onto the ferry.

"The first load went to Jersey City, across from the Battery, to a Red Cross supply area," Conroy explained. "When they saw what we had and how desperately needed the supplies were, we got clearance to go to ground zero, the World Financial pier.

"When we got there they said, ‘Great, now we need ....’ Our operations manager Gary Dunzelman was on the boat and he radioed back for flashlights, batteries, dry dog food. On Thursday, the call was for medical supplies. rain gear, ice, cellphone chargers, gloves, water, always water," she continued.

"We got the word out and people were listening, paying attention and brought just what we asked for."

Piles of bags and cases of donated clothing, dog food, bottled water and food for rescue crews made it hard to move around at McGinnis Printing on Monmouth Street last week where staffer Linda Kelly was fielding phone calls from those who wished to volunteer or donate and coordinating pick up and delivery of goods to the Highlands ferry landing.

Among the companies, local and distant, which contributed were Readie’s Fine Foods, Wayne’s Market, Broadway Diner, Fred D. Wykoff Co., Winters Furs, BonTon, Kislin’s, Oakland House, all Red Bank; Athlete’s Alley of Shrewsbury; Marshall’s, Attilio’s and Laurino Farms, Tinton Falls; several Sears locations; Kmart of West Long Branch; Food Circus Supermarkets, Middletown; Phillips Van Huesen, Bridgewater; Petsmart, Tony’s Pizza, Farmingdale; Red Moon Pizza and Uno’s, Howell; and numerous others.

With donations of supplies no longer being accepted, businesses are coming forward now and donating a portion of sales to disaster relief, according to Mary Mann, executive director of Red Bank RiverCenter.

"I know it’s frustrating; people want to physically do something but just writing a check to the Salvation Army or American Red Cross is the best thing you can do right now," she said.

Along with other cargo SeaStreak transported many of the search-and-rescue canines who were brought to work at the disaster site.

Special runs into New York continued on Thursday and Friday, and when a call went out for skilled tradesmen to help in removal of the rubble, Conroy said the SeaStreak New York was diverted to ferrying union workers to Pier 81 on New York’s west side, where the workers went on to a central point to be assigned.

By Monday, SeaStreak had received authorization to resume normal operations and the ferry service ran its normal schedule of 20 departures into New York ferrying commuters, as well as emergency personnel and tradesmen still needed at the disaster scene.

With service back to normal, Conroy finally had time to reflect on the remarkable role SeaStreak had stepped up to.

"With all the tragedy around us, it felt good to be such a help," she said "We got so many calls from people who wanted to help and felt helpless. We had the potential to help and to do so much good.

"As a company we may not have expected to be called on in a situation like this but having been called on, we’re proud of everybody’s role," she added. "Our crew and staff were more than ready for it. They have just been amazing."

New York Fast Ferry carried all who wanted to board gratis on Tuesday Koenig said and was allowed to make a few limited runs over the ensuing days to carry rescue workers to the disaster scene. By Monday, ferry service had returned to normal.

Koenig spoke of the relationship built with commuters.

"Our customers are regulars. I mean, if the market closed early one day because of a power outage, we would send a boat up," he explained. "We have people who ride everyday and we know when they need us. That’s what we do. They rely on us on a normal day, and they needed us even more now."